The Life of the Goedekers

Gabi's Baptism

2011-03-14T14:13:00.000-05:00

Gabi was baptized on Sunday! We had a great day with family and friends. We also had a house showing on Friday, which I thought was "the one", but they have to sell their house first before they can purchase ours. UGH! Hopefully it happens soon because I am getting impatient!

Gabi being baptized.

Nikki, Jeff & Gabi.

Jeff, the Priest, Nikki & Gabi.

Our little family.

Gabi's cake.

Another one of me, Gabi & Jeff.

Mexico

2011-03-09T11:05:00.000-05:00

Jeff and I had a nice, relaxing vacation this past weekend. We went to the beautiful Iberostar resort in Mexico with Heartland Dental. It was strange not having kids to take care of or dogs needing outside constantly!

Jeff and I the night of the reception.

My cool toe nail polish :)

The swim up bar.

Ocean view from our room.

Walkways around the resort.

Our bed.

Hallway in one of the buildings.

Brady Watching American Idol

2011-02-21T11:46:00.000-05:00

I recorded Americal Idol from last week and watched it yesterday. There was one group I really liked, so I watched it a second time. Brady started running around screaming, so I watched it a third time and video taped it. He really got into the whole singing and getting excited thing :)

Happy Valentine's Day and Gabi is Three Months Old!

2011-02-17T09:50:00.000-05:00

Jeff and I had a great Valentine's "weekend". Thursday evening we went to Stone Creek Dining Company with the Goedeker family for Brad's 30th birthday. Saturday evening Jeff and I went down to Bloomington to Scholar's Inn for dinner with a group of friends. And Sunday we went to Oceanaire for our Valentine's dinner!

Gabi had her three month photo shoot last Friday. I can't believe our little girl is already that old!

My beautiful Valentine's flowers from Jeff.

Brady, me and Gabi.

My Beautiful, Oh-So-Proper Daughter

2011-02-08T15:04:00.000-05:00

And I thought I was catching a smile.

Random Post to Catch Up

2011-02-08T14:56:00.000-05:00

I am so excited, I am finally caught up! I just finished going through all of our photographs from the past, oh....6 months :) Here is a bunch of random pictures of the kids from the past couple of months.

Gabi and Brady, December 2010.

Brady giving Gabi a kiss, December 2010.

Gabi, January 2011.

Gabi and Brady, January 2011.

Brady with "Teddy", November 2010.

Gabi and Peyton, February 2011.

Brady and Lilly, February 2011.

New Year's Eve

2011-02-03T16:26:00.000-05:00

We took a trip to Nashville, TN for a New Year's Eve wedding. The couple works for Heartland Dental Care with Jeff. For this trip, we took Grandma and Grandpa G. with us to watch the kiddos while we went to the wedding and reception. We also stopped at the Corvette Museum on the way down. We had a great time. Brady and Gabi are becoming quite the travelers! Happy New Year!

Nikki, Brady and Jeff before we took off for the wedding. Gabi wasn't allowed in the photo because I was afraid she was going to spit up all over me!

Me and Gabi at the Corvette Museum.

Brady standing in front of the car he picked out for his sixteenth Birthday :)

Flashback to 2010: Christmas

2011-02-03T15:28:00.000-05:00

We had a great Christmas. We were able to spend time with both sides of the family. Brady received way too may presents, but it was fun watching him open them. It will be great to move so we have some more storage space!

Brady staring at his new car track.

Brady opening his "Chuck the Truck" from Aunt Sara and Brian.

Brady actually opened everything on his own this year!

This is what he did after every piece of paper he ripped off. He handed it to someone to throw away.

Brady and Dad Christmas morning.

Gabi slept through Christmas morning.

Brady with his new digital camera!

Gabi sleeping on the way to Grandma and Grandpa's house.

Flashback to 2010: Effingham, IL

2011-02-03T15:06:00.000-05:00

We took our annual trip to Effingham, IL in early December for Jeff's corporate Christmas party. Since Gabi was only a few weeks old, I didn't feel comfortable leaving her with the babysitters in the hotel, so Grandma and Grandpa O. joined us for the weekend so they could watch the kiddos. Brady played with Grandpa all day Friday, then Friday evening Jeff and I got to go to the party. Saturday morning Jeff had class, so Grandma and Grandpa joined me, Brady and Gabi for breakfast and lunch. Thanks for watching them so we could enjoy ourselves!

Grandpa and Brady at the Hilton. We love their decorations every year!

Jeff and I at the party.

Me, Gabi, Brady and Jeff. What a wonderful family photo :)

Brady, Me and Gabi.

Grandma and Grandpa O. with Gabi and Brady.

Flashback to 2010: Pictures with Santa

2011-01-27T13:26:00.000-05:00

For the past couple of years, we have had "Pictures with Santa" and "Pictures with the Easter Bunny" at Jeff's office. We weren't sure what was going to happen this year since Gabi was due right around that time. Since I had her on November 20th, I agreed to still come and take the photos (two weeks later on December 4th). Although I was pretty sore when the two hours were over, I managed to pull through!

Brady actually sat on Santa's lap. The first time he cried, then I put him on Santa about an hour later and I got a smile out of him!

Brady sitting on Santa's lap.

Jeff and his staff.

Flashback to 2010: Gabi's Newborn Photos

2011-01-11T14:02:00.000-05:00

Below are a few of Gabi's newborn photos from when she was one week old. Photos were taken by Eliza Marie Photography.

Flashback to 2010: The Birth of Gabrielle Rae Goedeker

2011-01-09T22:53:00.000-05:00

Gabrielle Rae Goedeker was born on Saturday, November 20th at 10 am. She was 6 lbs 5 oz and 20 inches in length. I woke up at 1 am with back cramps like it started with Brady. For the next few hours, I woke up about every 20 minutes having a little more pain. By 4:30 am, I started having small contractions. At 5:30 am, I woke Jeff up and told him I was going to get in the shower and he should cancel his Ortho class because I was in labor and we were going to have a baby! At around 6:30 we were still taking our time getting out the door. I started having contractions that hurt so bad I couldn't stand up, so I told Jeff we needed to get moving. We headed out the door, Jeff's parents met us at the hospital to get Brady and we were admitted around 7:15 am. The rest went pretty quickly because I had her at 10 am!

Brady holding Gabi for the first time.

Brady got to hang out with his grandparents :)

Great-Grandma holding Gabi.

Jeff, Great-Grandma, Grandma and Gabi.

Daddy and Gabi.

Grandma O., Me, Grandpa O. and Gabi.

Flashback to 2010: Halloween

2011-01-09T16:38:00.002-05:00

Brady really enjoyed Halloween this year. He chose to be Snoopy. I gave him the BuyCostumes.com catalog and he flipped through the entire thing, then came back to Snoopy, pointed at it, and said "dog".

He really started to get the hang of running up to the houses and getting candy. I have lots of videos from it, but I need to go through them and compress them, so until then, here is a picture of Jeff and Brady and a small video so you can see what he looked like.

Brady's Second Birthday

2010-12-29T15:51:00.000-05:00

Brady's second Birthday was October 18th. We had a Snoopy theme since he chose to be Snoopy for Halloween. We had a great time and he actually opened his own presents!

Brady's Snoopy cake.

Snoopy balloon.

He actually opened all of his presents by himself!

He enjoyed the big box more than any of his presents.

Blowing out his candles with Dad.

Brady with Uncle Brad and Dad when everyone was singing happy birthday.

The cake and ice cream were pretty good :)

It's Been a While

2010-12-13T17:04:00.000-05:00

A lot has happened in the past few months and I am WAY behind! Brady turned two and went trick-or-treating for the first time, Jeff turned 32, and we welcomed Gabi into the world! I will start back a couple of months ago with our 2010 trip to Stonycreek Farm.

Brady picking out a pumpkin.

Jeff and Brady.

Running up the hay pile.

Jeff and Brady.

Brady's New Basketball Hoop

2010-10-26T14:09:00.000-04:00

We got Brady a basketball hoop for his birthday (and at this point, I'm wondering if Jeff wanted it more for him or Brady!). Anyways, he is getting pretty good at putting the ball in the basket.

A Nightly Occurrence In Our House

2010-10-10T22:36:00.000-04:00

I think Brady is ready for his baby sister to arrive because this is now a nightly occurrence in our house. He thinks it's funny to take the bone from Peyton and run around with it. Luckily, Peyton just chases Brady until he gets it and never gets mad!

3D/4D Ultrasound and Brady's 2 Year Pics

2010-10-04T22:16:00.001-04:00

Friday we had our 3D/4D ultrasound! It was neat to see, but Jeff and I weren't exactly "amazed" by it :) Gabi is now about 3.6 lbs and I am about 30 1/2 weeks. She has already dropped. It worries me a little because she is sitting so low, but I am starting to feel better than I did last week. The exhaustion is coming back and there is just a lot of pressure down there already. So, I don't think I will be doing a lot of walking from now until she arrives because it feels like she is going to fall out! We are just hoping that she stays put for another 7 weeks!

Gabi's face. Her cheek is smashed against my placenta :)

Gabi's feet with her ankles crossed.

Brady will be turning two in two weeks. I can't believe how fast time flies! Below are a few of his two year photos. We took him to Portrait Innovations because it was pouring all day on Saturday. I hope to get him outside soon so we can get some more!

"I'm all business". Brady modeling his Halloween costume, Snoopy.

September Update

2010-09-19T22:50:00.000-04:00

Moving? Baby due in 2 1/2 months? Brady's birthday coming up soon? Football season and we have both Colts and Notre Dame season tickets? Yes, it is all happening. We have been crazy busy!

We weren't going to start seriously looking to move until next summer, but we came across a deal that we just couldn't pass up. So, all we have been doing the last three weeks is cleaning, taking things to a storage shed, and painting. Our house went on the market last Tuesday! We are so excited, but there are just so many things going on right now, I don't think it is going to sink in until I am sitting in the new house. I will give more details about the new house later, but we are still in the negotiation stages, so we really aren't talking about it yet.

I have been horrible about tracking this pregnancy. I don't have belly pictures, room pictures, stats or anything! I will try to get some belly pictures up sometime this week. We do have her room painted and her bedding and crib purchased, but everything else is still coming together. I have an ultrasound scheduled for this Friday because my placenta was really low at the beginning of the pregnancy. They said if it doesn't move, I will have to have a c-section.

We picked out a name (we haven't figured out her middle name yet)! Her name is going to be Gabrielle Goedeker (we are going to call her Gabi).

Brady is doing really well. I will hopefully have an update on him soon with photos. He has been doing the "Your Baby Can Read" program since March and can now read 8 words! The words are: dog, hi, keys, cats, ball, hat, cup and duck.

Here are the listing pictures for our house:

Holiday World

2010-08-08T22:20:00.000-04:00

Brady, Jeff, Me

We decided to spend a day at Holiday World because we had a free weekend. A lot of Jeff's patients were telling him that there is a lot for kids Brady's age to do. We weren't so sure about it at first (Brady sometimes isn't in the best mood when he doesn't get his nap!), but both sets of grandparents, Sara and Brian came along. We left early Saturday morning and spent the day. Brady ended up doing really well!

Brady's first carousel ride.

Brady's first airplane ride.

The whole group (except for me and Grandma O.): Grandma & Grandpa G., Jeff & Brady, Grandpa O., Brian & Sara

Jeff and Brady riding the cars.

Grandma and Grandpa G.

Grandpa O., Sara and Brian

Brady, not so sure about riding this fish.

Brady, Me and Holidog.

End of the day, we made it!

Our Anniversary Weekend

2010-08-03T10:33:00.000-04:00

Jeff and I celebrated our 5 year Anniversary on Friday by going out to eat at Fogo De Chao. It is a Brazilian Steakhouse in Indianapolis. The food was great, but I left so full, I thought my stomach was going to explode! We are also planning on getting each other the new iPhone.

On Saturday, my parents came in town to help me start getting the baby's room ready. I remember how tired I got at the end of the pregnancy last time, so this time I am trying to get things prepared early. So far we got the closet painted and some closet organizers installed. My Dad also put new vents on the outside of the house while he was here and cleaned up the mess in the attic where the birds tore apart our vent pipes. Thanks for all of your hard work and help!

While we were hard at work, Jeff went down to French Lick for a friends Bachelor Party.

Dropping Brady off at Grandma and Grandpa G's before we went to dinner.

Me and Jeff.

Me, Brady and Jeff.

The Last Few Weekends

2010-08-03T10:23:00.000-04:00

The last few weekends we have been enjoying the weather and spending time with family. We took a trip up to South Bend on July 11th to celebrate my Dad's birthday. Some weekends we have spent some time at Jeff's parents at the pool. Brady is becoming quite the swimmer. He now kicks around with the swimmies on and nobody holding onto him!

Brady and I at the JMF Kiddie Dash.

The back of the t-shirt I made for Brady that says "Kiddie Dash"

Brady going down the slide at Grandma and Grandpa O's.

Brady playing at Grandma and Grandpa O's.

Brady swinging at Grandma and Grandpa O's.

Brady trying to keep his Cheetos away from Sara's dog.

The Kiddie Dash

2010-07-14T21:55:00.000-04:00

Brady ran in his first race this past weekend! I have been designing all of the materials for the Joseph Maley Foundation through work, so this past weekend Jeff and I walked in the 2nd Annual JMF 5K Run/2 mile walk. Let me just say, this is the first race I have EVER walked in! I always run, but right now when I jog, I feel like my stomach is going to fall out of my body, so we decided to walk. We took Brady in the jogging stroller, then after the run and walk was over, they had a Kiddie Dash!

The foundation was started by neighbors of our president at work whose son died of Leukemia at the age of 18. I have designed everything for this foundation from the logo to all of the event materials to the website! The website is still in its first launch stage (they are going to eventually have a video player on the front page and some more info for the bios). You can check it out at http://www.josephmaley.org/

Here is how the Kiddie Dash went:

Jeff with Brady at the starting line (he looked like he was ready to go!)

All of the kids took off.

If you can see in the far background, Jeff is now standing in front of Brady, trying to get him to move. After all of the kids took off, he just decided to stand there!

Brady finally took off and he was running like a pro!

And he crossed the finish line!

It's a Girl!

2010-07-09T18:04:00.000-04:00

We had our ultrasound today! Everything looked great and Brady is going to have a baby sister!

Baby Girl's Profile

It's a Girl!

Her arm and fingers.

Her face.

4th of July Weekend

2010-07-08T16:41:00.001-04:00

Brad and Brady reading by the pool.

We had a great fourth weekend! Jeff had to work on Monday, so we celebrated our 4th of July on Saturday. Brady went to Grandma and Grandpa G's house while Jeff and I headed up to Geist where some friends have a house and a boat. We had a great time, but I got pretty sick Saturday night because of the boat! I guess boating and pregnancy doesn't go well with me. I have only been on a boat three times while pregnant and I have ended up pretty sick all three times!

On Sunday, we went over to Grandma and Grandpa G's house with Uncle Brad and Aunt Marissa to hang out by the pool!

On the boat! (I'm the second one on the left. Jeff laughed at me because I went out the morning we left to buy a bathing suit. I told him I wasn't wearing a bikini while I was pregnant!)

Brady sun bathing.

Brady swimming with Uncle Brad and Dad.

Brady sitting in the big boy chair.

Brady sitting with Dad.

Jeff water skiing.

Peyton, Jeff and Brady.

Our Pre-fourth of July Weekend

2010-07-06T13:55:00.000-04:00

Last weekend Aunt Sara and Uncle Brian (well, soon to be Uncle Brian), came to visit Brady. Saturday afternoon I took them down to the canal to take their engagement photos. Afterwards, we went down to Aunt Marissa and Uncle Brad's house for a cookout and to watch the Greenwood fireworks. Thanks everyone, we had a great time!

A few of my favorite photos of Sara and Brian:

Brady stole my old cell phone and was talking on it.

Aunt Sara playing with Brady at the cookout.

Uncle Brad with Brady and Garrett (Aunt Marissa's sisters son).

Where did June go?

2010-07-01T13:40:00.001-04:00

So, as I realize that today is July 1, I wonder where in the world did the past month go? I think part of it was because we moved to the new building at work and I was at work for 12 days in a row (usually I work 3 days a week). Right before the move we got really busy and one of the guys I work with took two weeks off because his wife had a baby, so I covered for the Mondays and Fridays of those two weeks. It made me realize how crazy life would be if I worked full time. By the end of those two weeks, we had no food, piles of laundry everywhere and it looked like a tornado had been through the house.

On top of all of that, our dishwasher stopped getting dishes cleaned, so we went 2 weeks without a dishwasher, AND our dryer started smelling really bad. So, we had to purchase a new dishwasher and get all of the vents cleaned out because there were birds nests shoved up in all of our vents. I think things are back to normal now :)

We have an appointment next Friday, July 9th, to find out what the sex of the baby is! This pregnancy is different from when I was pregnant with Brady. I am really moody, tired and hungry all of the time. I constantly crave sweets or something icy (like a slushy or popsicle).

In the past month, Brady went to his first festival, went on his first boat ride and played outside in the sprinkler and the pool.

Enjoy the pictures!

Brady on his first boat ride (he was tired, it was 9:00 at night!)

Brady fishing with Dad at the OLG Festival

Brady just thrilled that he won a stuffed fish!

Not sure what to think of the sprinkler.

It's cold!

He found a hole to stand between where the water was coming from, so then he liked it.

The water is good!

Happy Memorial Day!

2010-05-31T15:45:00.002-04:00

We have had a busy Memorial Day weekend! On Saturday, we went downtown to the 500 parade, where Brady attended his first parade. He waved and clapped the entire time. And the best part was, we didn't have to stand in the heat! The company I work for is moving and we just happen to have a balcony AND be on the parade route, so we went to our new building to see the parade.

On Sunday we headed down to Grandma and Grandpa G.'s where Brady played in the pool and on the swing. He LOVES to swing, we had to keep dragging him away from it. Sunday evening we headed down to Bloomington where Brady went on his first boat ride! He enjoyed it and played well with one of our friends sons, who is almost 3 years old.

I guess I didn't explain much about the pregnancy in my last post. I am about 12 1/2 weeks along and due on December 9th. Things are going well, I am just exhausted and extremely hungry!

Brady loving the swing.

Brady wouldn't leave the swing along. Every time we tried to do another activity, he would walk back towards it.

Brady's new pool.

Shovels aren't just for sand :)

Loving the new pool.

Brady's Message

2010-05-14T22:20:00.002-04:00

I will write more later, but Brady has a message to share!

Family Photos are Posted!

2010-04-22T09:15:00.001-04:00

I haven't had much to update because we have all been sick. We are slowly getting better, but it seems like it is taking forever! Brady started out with pink eye and an ear infection on Friday, April 9th. Then that Sunday I got pink eye, a sore throat and an ear infection. Jeff got a sore throat and started coughing and losing his voice. Now we have the lingering of a cough and a raspy voice. Hopefully this will soon pass because I can't stand being sick for weeks at a time!

Our family photos that we took a few weeks ago are posted!
To view them, you can go to:
http://www.ryancookphotography.com/
Click on "SITE". Then click on "CLIENTS" on the lower menu bar. Our password is "goedeker" (all lowercase).

Easter Weekend

2010-04-08T14:13:00.000-04:00

We had a great Easter weekend. It started off on Saturday morning with pictures with the Easter Bunny at Jeff's office and ended with the Duke/Butler game Monday night at Lucas Oil Stadium. After pictures on Saturday morning, Grandma and Grandpa O. came to town. They stayed with us Saturday night.

We went to church Sunday morning and went back to Grandma and Grandpa G's house for brunch with everyone. Brady went on his first Easter egg hunt (which didn't go too well because he kept running to the sidewalk to stay out of the grass!). By the end of the day he was walking in the grass and when we got home he was running around our backyard.

Waking up early + no nap + long morning with a bunch of strangers and a weird white bunny at Jeff's office = a toddler throwing tantrums.

So, I just colored the eggs by myself.

My blueberry popovers I made for brunch. Thanks to the people that gave this recipe 5 stars, because I give it about 1/2 a star! They weren't very good!

Easter Basket #1 from Grandma and Grandpa O.

Easter Basket #2 from Mom and Dad.

Easter Basket #3 from Grandma and Grandpa G.

Brady's first Easter Egg hunt.

Notice he is running to the sidewalk after he grabbed the egg!

Brady's Egg he found.

Trying to figure out what to do with it.

Talking to the Goose.

Hanging out with Grandpa O.

Hanging out with Grandpa G.

Jeff, Brady and me.

Brad and Marissa.

Grandpa and Grandma O. with Brady.

Grandma and Grandpa G. with Brady.

Final Four in Indianapolis

2010-04-07T14:54:00.000-04:00

We were fortunate enough to get pretty good seats to the Butler vs. Duke game! It was such an exciting game and one that people will be talking about for years. Butler came up short at the end, but was in it the entire game.

Outside Lucas Oil Stadium.

Jeff and I.

Scoreboard.

Pictures with the Easter Bunny

2010-04-06T14:40:00.000-04:00

At Jeff's office this year we had the Easter Bunny come for "Pictures with the Easter Bunny". I was the photographer and we had a good turn out despite the rain! Everyone seemed to have a good time and the local fire department even came to show off the fire truck to the kids. We did learn that next year Brady will not be staying the entire time :) He decided to throw a tantrum every time I walked by the room he was in and he wouldn't nap or eat. Thanks to one of Jeff's staff who brought their daughter so she could look after him!

Jeff and his staff.

Easter Bunny, Jeff and Brady. Brady was actually afraid of the Bunny, he wouldn't sit on his lap.

Easter Bunny, Me and Brady.

More Jamaica Pics

2010-03-31T16:34:00.000-04:00

Jeff and I.

We received the DVD of images last night from Heartland, so here are a few more pics from our trip!

Dr. Workman, Jeff, Me, Pat Bauer.

I guess I missed this picture when I went to find a sweater.

The Heartland Group.

To go in the Grass, or to not go in the Grass?

2010-03-30T10:04:00.001-04:00

Brady looked like he was standing at the edge of a cliff.

Since the sun is coming out and it is starting to warm up, Brady has been spending some time outside lately. What I didn't realize when we went outside to play, was that Brady was afraid of the grass! Last summer he sat in the grass to play, but I guess he was sitting on a blanket most of the time. So, when I put him out back, he walked to the edge of the patio and froze. He finally got used to it after Jeff placed him in the middle of the yard, but it was pretty funny to watch him step on it!

Can I just touch it?

Starting to put his foot on the grass.

Maybe this isn't so bad!

Dad put me in the middle of the yard!

I did it!

Weekend Hanging Out

2010-03-28T14:31:00.000-04:00

Jeff had class Friday and Saturday, so Brady and I hung out both days. We did laundry, cleaned, went to the mall and played. In the evenings we have spent some time watching basketball. I am still in the running for my tournament pool at work!

Brady likes to sit on the sofa all by himself now.

Brady's new PJ's.

Brady Loves Wheel of Fortune

2010-03-23T13:49:00.007-04:00

Brady loves the show Wheel of Fortune. He sways back and forth to the music and claps his hands when the wheel spins!

My Birthday Week

2010-03-23T13:41:00.000-04:00

Yes, I literally had an entire week of Birthday celebration. Thanks to everyone who helped celebrate with me!

Last Wednesday (my birthday), Jeff and Brady sent these beautiful flowers to me at work! I also got a Diary Queen cake at work :)

Then, Jeff got me this new handbag

and I also got this coat from my parents!

We are currently saving up to buy me a new Mac because my Mac is really old and is starting to freeze up when I work in certain programs. So, I received a Best Buy gift card from Brad & Marissa and Paul & Darlene!

After work on Wednesday we went out to Fiesta, our favorite Mexican Restaurant. Friday morning Brady and I went shopping with some friends at the Edinburgh Outlets and Friday evening we went down to Louisville to meet some friends at the dog show. On the way home, Brady enjoyed his first visit to Pizza Hut.

Brady wearing his first Pizza Hut bib.

On Saturday evening we had dinner at Buca di Beppo Italian Restaurant with Brad, Marissa, Paul and Darlene. We also celebrated Paul's birthday because our birthdays are just two days apart. On Sunday, we met my parents at Texas Roadhouse in Kokomo and celebrated with Mike and Kim!

Jeff, Paul, Brady and Darlene

Marissa and Brad

Me with my birthday cupcake and candles.

Jeff and I

Brady playing with the napkin.

Heartland President's Club 2010

2010-03-09T16:54:00.000-05:00

Nikki & Jeff, Jamaica 2010

We are back from Jamaica and we had a wonderful trip! We left early Thursday morning and got back late Sunday night. We ended up having a flight delayed going there and a flight delayed coming home. We decided if Jeff makes it next year, we will have to add on an extra day or two! We met a lot of great people from Heartland all over the United States.

We received gifts from Heartland each day including a scarf and visor, wallets, and a Jamaican mask. Jeff also received an award at the closing reception the last night. Some close friends from Bloomington also qualified for the trip, so we had dinner with them the first night.

Me standing by one of the stairwells.

The walk out to the beach (I think this guy thought he was going to duck out of my photo!)

One of the pools.

The beach.

View from the beach looking back at the resort.

The pool bar.

Me on the beach.

Jeff on the beach.

View from our balcony at night.

View of the pools from our balcony at night.

Jeff and I with friends from Zionsville (she is 27 weeks pregnant and still made the trip!).

Jeff and I with Jen and Ryan.

Brady sitting on Peyton's head (this is a daily occurrence in our house).

Brady's First Haircut

2010-02-28T18:20:00.000-05:00

Brady had a few pieces of hair in the front that were getting pretty long, so we called Grandma Goedeker to see if she was willing to give Brady his first haircut!

Brady all caped up and ready for his haircut!

He sat very still for Grandma.

"Grandma, you are getting it in my eyes!"

"How do I look?"

The finished product.

Four Teeth and Eating with a Spoon

2010-02-26T13:05:00.000-05:00

Brady is now working on eating with a spoon!

New Champion Photo!

2010-02-25T10:30:00.002-05:00

Jamaica, here we come! Only 6 more days!

We have been busy getting things ready for our vacation and Jeff has been busy with meetings/traveling for work. The last couple of weeks we got our taxes figured (ouch!), went out for Valentine's Day, took the Cadillac in to have a recall fixed, Brady had his doctor's check-up, and Phoenix had his 7th Birthday. Brady now has 4 teeth!

Jeff and I went to The Melting Pot for our Valentine's Day dinner and we got each other sunglasses for our trip to Jamaica. Of course you will see photos of our sunglasses when I post them from the trip :)

So, here's to hoping that the snow will go away and the warm weather will come soon!

The photo from the photographer: Jeff & Nikki, Effingham 2009.

Peyton's New Champion Photo in Lake St. Louis.

Brady, 15 months

2010-02-09T13:34:00.004-05:00

Brady, 15 months old.

We had a great weekend despite the Colts losing the Super Bowl. Jeff had classes all day Friday and Saturday in Illinois, so Brady and I held the fort down, which included taking pictures, shoveling snow, and cleaning. We went bowling with some friends Saturday night and went to a Super Bowl party on Sunday.

Brady watching the snow come down.

Brady walking down the hallway.

Brady sitting on Jeff's shoulders during the game.

Brady wrapped up in the Colts blankets that Anne and Stacy made for him.

Brady is Walking!

2010-02-06T11:09:00.003-05:00

Now that Brady has gained confidence and is walking everywhere, he won't stop!

Weekend in Lake St. Louis

2010-02-05T17:28:00.003-05:00

Last weekend we took a trip to Lake St. Louis to see some friends and finish Peyton's Championship. The dogs did great, but Brady, on the other hand wasn't on his best behavior :) I think the fact that he is getting some more teeth had something to do with it, but Friday night in the hotel was awful.

On Saturday, a puppy we bred last summer, Bee, took Winners Bitch and Best of Winners, earning her one point. On Sunday, Peyton earned his last point and is now a Champion! Bee also earned a point on Sunday, giving her three points at eight months of age. Pretty impressive Erin and Bee!

Brady hanging out at the Hilton.

Brady on the big boy bed.

Brady's First IU Game

2010-01-27T14:17:00.003-05:00

Nikki, Brady and Jeff after the game.

Brady attended his first IU Basketball game on New Year's Eve. He seemed to enjoy it because he started clapping his hands when everyone around him got excited (his favorite show is Wheel of Fortune because all they do is clap!). He made it through the entire game without getting too fussy and we even went to Yogi's afterward to have dinner!

Brady watching the game.

Brady and Nikki after the game.

Brady and Jeff after the game.

Christmas

2010-01-27T11:02:00.006-05:00

Christmas is always a busy time for us because we have so many things going on with work and traveling. We spent Christmas Eve with Jeff's side of the family, opened presents with Aunt Marissa, Uncle Brad, Grandma G., and Grandpa G., then went to midnight Mass. We won't go to midnight Mass again anytime soon! I figured Brady would just sleep through Mass. No, he wanted to be awake and see everything. He was really good during church, but was in the worst mood ever when he woke up Christmas morning. After we opened presents Christmas morning we drove up to South Bend to celebrate with my side of the family.

Brady helping us get the Christmas tree out of the box.

I got it!

Phoenix by the tree.

Christmas morning snot and tears.

After he calmed down, he decided to eat a bow.

Playing with presents at Grandma and Grandpa O's.

Unwrapping presents at Grandma and Grandpa O's.

Pictures with Santa at Camby Family Dentistry

2010-01-21T16:15:00.003-05:00

Since "Pictures with the Easter Bunny" was so successful, Jeff and his staff decided to take on "Pictures with Santa". We had a good turn out and everyone that came received a free 5x7, balloons, and face painting.

Jeff and his staff.

Brady with Santa. He was pretty scared of him!

After Santa left, Brady had a blast!

Purina Farms

2010-01-21T10:49:00.003-05:00

Halloween weekend we took our annual trip to Purina Farms to meet up with some friends for the International Dog Show. This show is more for practice in the show ring and fun with people we haven't seen in a while because it doesn't count towards AKC points. It is also nice because you receive a written evaluation from the judges instead of walking out of the ring wondering what happened. Everyone we were with earned their "International Title". We also got to see Bee (a puppy out of the litter we bred last summer)!

Beautiful sunset on the way to St. Louis.

Bee, a puppy from the Hudson x Lilly litter.

Bee stacked.

Bee did really well that weekend, she won best puppy in show!

Peyton

Diva, a Beagle friend who did really well that weekend and also is doing really well in the AKC ring!

Me and our "human dog". It was Halloween, so Brady wore his costume until he got annoyed with it.

Brady climbing the stairs. He climbed all of the way to the top 4 times that day.

Brady wearing Peyton's medals.

Fun in the Leaves

2010-01-20T16:06:00.003-05:00

I took some friends out for a photo shoot last November and Brady joined us because they have a son around his age. While we were out, I stuck Brady in a pile of leaves to see what he would do. So, here's his first time in the leaves!

Halloween

2010-01-20T11:06:00.005-05:00

I posted pictures of Stoneycreek Farm when we went, but I did not get the pumpkin carving pictures up! Brady cleaned and carved his first pumpkin after we picked out our pumpkins at Stoneycreek Farm. I also got a photo of him in his Halloween costume.

Every year Jeff's office has a pumpkin competition and we always throw something together at the last minute. This year we purchased a kit while we were at Stoneycreek Farm and we made a turkey pumpkin for his office. Jeff didn't win, but his girls do a great job of decorating every year.

The turkey pumpkin we made.

Close-up of his face.

Brady in his Halloween costume.

So, what the heck are we doing?!

I put my hand in like this, right Mom?

The finished products.

Bath Time Fun

2010-01-19T16:23:00.002-05:00

Having the time of my life in the tub.

Brady received a new tub for his Birthday and he couldn't be happier with it. These photos are from last October. Along with the tub, he received a bunch of bath toys. Bath time is such a blast now!

Brady's One Year Pictures

2010-01-19T15:22:00.003-05:00

Brady reading in the park.

Last November I took Brady down to the canal to take some photos. So, I guess you could call these his one year pictures!

Still Toothless...

2010-01-14T15:12:00.003-05:00

Brady is almost 15 months old and he still doesn't have any teeth! Below are some random photos taken from the last couple of months.

Brady "helping" mom go through his old clothes.

Attempt one, but Lilly wouldn't look.

Attempt two, but Brady wouldn't smile.

Brady and Peyton watching TV.

Brady with his fire truck.

Effingham Trip

2010-01-14T11:18:00.004-05:00

I am going to be going backwards in the next few posts in hopes of catching up! In December, we took our annual trip to Effingham, IL for Jeff's corporate Christmas Party. It is always fun to stay at the Hilton with all of the beautiful Christmas decorations. On Friday, Brady and I stayed together while Jeff was in classes all day. We took a trip to Walmart to eat lunch at Subway and watched Christmas movies on TV. Friday night was the big party and Brady stayed with the babysitters. We had a great time and took some pictures around the hotel after the party.

On Saturday Jeff and I went to the Bell Leadership class. Apparently Brady cried the entire time with the babysitter. I took him to the doctor that following Monday to find out that he had another ear infection!

Nice trip and we received a plate from Tiffany & Co. engraved with "Heartland Dental Care"!

Brady and Jeff.

Brady and Nikki.

Brady and Jeff.

Brady and Nikki.

Brady crawling the halls at the Hilton.

Touchdown!

2010-01-11T13:51:00.002-05:00

Brady is practicing for this Saturday's Colts game!

Running a little behind (as usual)

2009-12-09T13:03:00.002-05:00

It's Christmastime? I don't ever know where the time goes, things just seem to creep up on us. My Christmas shopping is almost finished, but I have yet to finish the Christmas Cards or get the tree up! Hopefully this weekend will be the weekend to get everything accomplished.

Congrats to Peyton for earning a point last Friday in Belleville, IL. He only has one more point to earn his Championship! One of our puppies also earned a point this past weekend in Northwest, Arkansas. Congrats Bee, owned by Erin Powell, who took her first point at 6 months and two weeks old!

Last Thursday we had "Pictures with Santa" at Jeff's office, Friday I had to work and Jeff took Peyton to Belleville for the dog show, Saturday Jeff helped a friend move and I finally found a dress for Jeff's Heartland Christmas Party, and Sunday we attended the Colts/Tennessee game. This weekend will be just as busy!

More Random Photos

2009-11-16T22:09:00.004-05:00

Brady had his one year appointment today. He is now 18 lbs. 6 oz. and 29 1/2 inches long. Poor guy had some shots, so he is a little sore. This past weekend we met my parents in Kokomo for Jeff's Birthday dinner. We also attended the Colts/New England game last night. It was amazing!

Brady's First Birthday

2009-11-05T21:39:00.003-05:00

We attended Franklin College Homecoming on October 17th and Brady was not acting like himself. Usually he is really happy to see everyone, but that day he kept a straight face about everything. When he woke up the morning of his Birthday (October 18th), he was feeling worse! I felt so bad for the little guy. So, instead of enjoying his first Birthday, he would play with his new toys, then start crying for no reason. I took him to the doctor that Monday and he had an ear infection.

Brady wanted to thank our family members for coming to his Birthday party and helping him celebrate his big day. Sorry he wasn't feeling very well!

Brady taking a nap in the middle of his party

It has buttons!

A new remote!

Brady's Birthday cake - it's a Weimaraner!

The smash cake

The Birthday hat

Random Photo Update

2009-11-02T14:53:00.006-05:00

Brady is taking an extra long nap this afternoon, so I am going to upload some of the photos from the last month. These are before his Birthday.

Update on the Dogs

2009-10-28T21:00:00.003-05:00

The three dogs are still here! I know, its been all about Brady, so I figured I should post an update on the dogs. Phoenix still spends the majority of his time in our bedroom reading (for those of you that know the joke!), Lilly has been fixed and is done with motherhood, and Peyton will hopefully be finishing up his show championship early next year. A few weeks ago we went to the Weim Club of Greater Louisville Specialty and Peyton showed really well. He earned his second Major there. Below are some images of the neat prizes they had! We received a "Handmade by Sharon" card and a small bowl with a Weim on it. Congrats Peyton and thanks for winning us some cool prizes!

Peyton at the Greater Cincinnati Weim Club show (Jeff liked this picture better than the one that was taken at the Louisville show)

The Weimaraner card we won

The bowl

Stoneycreek Farm

2009-10-06T10:32:00.004-04:00

Family photo by the hay pile. I think Brady was sick of pictures by this point!

We took a trip up to Noblesville this past Saturday to the Pumpkin Harvest Festival at Stoneycreek Farm. It was such a cute place! They had a hay ride, pumpkin patch, jumping pillow, pedal cars, duck race, giant chess, a haunted house, pumpkin train, straw maze, pony rides and so much more! Of course Brady couldn't go on the rides yet, but I think he had fun in the hay ride and picking out his pumpkin!

On Friday, since the weather cooled off so quickly, Brady and I went to look for a coat. I couldn't believe how expensive kids coats are! It was crazy. Three hours later, we found one I liked at Old Navy. It was a little big (as you can see in the photos below), but I am glad we got it! We also went to the Whiteland High School football game Friday night where Brady attended his first football game.

Brady got to see Grandma and Grandpa O. this weekend. On Sunday Jeff played in a golf tournament, so my dad and I went to the Colts game while my mom watched Brady. I think he was worn out when we got home because he fell asleep about 7:00!

The hay ride to the pumpkin patch.

The pumpkins.

Brady, I think this one is a little big for you!

Brady really liked this pumpkin.

Brady and I posing for a photo.

This one is perfect for him!

Another picture with his pumpkin.

The hay ride back with the pumpkins we picked.

Here comes trouble!

2009-09-30T13:58:00.004-04:00

Brady is officially holding onto things and standing up. He is also taking small steps around the sectional and ottoman. This means trouble! He will be walking soon! Besides the constant "dad dad" and "ma ma", Brady is starting to talk a lot more. We think he said his first word this past week. While Brady was sitting in the bouncer waiting for me to change out of my work clothes, Lilly walked into the bathroom. Brady looked at her and said "goo-gee!" Is that doggie?! I don't know for sure, but we will say he said "doggie". :)

This past weekend Jeff started an ortho course on Friday and Saturday, so I was on dog and Brady duty. We went to a wedding Saturday evening in Rushville and had a great time. Brady stayed with Grandma and Grandpa G. for the evening. Brady also had his first lesson with Skype. We video-chatted with Grandma and Grandpa O. so they could see him standing up!

This weekend we will be taking a trip up to Noblesville to a pumpkin patch so (in Jeff's words) "Brady can pick out his great pumpkin".

Happy Labor Day!

2009-09-08T09:24:00.007-04:00

This past weekend included a lot of traveling! Friday we traveled to Cincinnati for a Weimaraner Specialty, where Peyton took Reserve to a Major. Friday night was a long night for me because Brady couldn't sleep. He was all stuffed up and had a slight fever. So, we were up until about 2:30 AM until he finally fell asleep sitting up in his swing. What in the world am I going to do when he grows out of that swing? He loves it and it is always the solution when nothing else will work!

Since Brady wasn't feeling well, Jeff traveled to the Illinois retrieving test on Saturday by himself with Peyton and Lilly. They both passed the land retrieve, but did not pass the water retrieve. When he got home from that, he headed to Fort Wayne for a bachelor party. Brady and I decided to spend the night shopping.

Sunday was a day of catching up and relaxing. Then Monday we traveled up to South Bend for Labor Day, my Mom's Birthday, and to meet my sister's boyfriends parents, who were in town from Alabama. It was a nice day and Brady had a good time playing with everyone. Luckily we didn't get any speeding tickets because I think we passed about 30 cops on the way home!

Brady waving at the camera with Grandma and Aunt Sara

Brady playing with the toys at my parents house

Is Fall Really Here?

2009-09-01T16:16:00.004-04:00

Time seems to fly. Time seems to fly even faster with a child. I cannot believe that the weather is cooling off, school is back in session, and Brady is almost a year old!

This past weekend was a relaxing time to catch up. I finished putting the last of the puppy stuff away, cleaned, did laundry, did some ironing, and for the first time in the last 12 weeks I felt relaxed about what needed to be accomplished.

Friday evening we went to dinner with some friends that are expecting in November. Saturday we went shopping for some baby shower gifts and ended up eating at the food court in the mall because it is possibly the easiest place to eat without worrying about how loud Brady gets. He is a really good kid, he is just getting to the point where he likes to randomly talk really loud or scream and I don't like to be "that person" with their child yelling in a relatively quiet place. I have also managed to run 4 of the last 6 days!

Yesterday Brady and I got the opportunity to take some photos. Here he is at 10 1/2 months old:

10 Months Old

2009-08-18T21:21:00.005-04:00

Brady wearing his "Duck, Duck, Moose" shirt that Grandma and Grandpa O. got him in Salt Lake City.

Brady turned 10 months old today! I cannot believe how fast he is growing. We are going to have to go shopping soon because all of his 9 month clothing is becoming a bit too tight (oh darn, shopping)!

We took a trip to the doctor last Friday and here are his current stats:
Date: 08.14.09
Height: 28 1/2 inches
Weight: 17 lbs. 8 1/2 oz.

Brady asleep in his exersaucer. Yes, I know he is not supposed to sleep in this thing.

Recovered?

2009-08-16T21:40:00.005-04:00

Yes, I know I have been a little MIA lately! We left off in May with my first mini-marathon and believe me, a lot has happened since then! No, I am not pregnant again (thanks Sarah, for wondering. ha ha). We decided to breed Lilly one last time and we ended up with another litter of eight puppies. This time with little Brady and all of the puppies, I had a more difficult time keeping up with updating the website, taking pictures, puppies, cleaning, Brady, and work. Don't worry, two weeks ago I took a day off of work for some shopping, a mani/pedi, a 60 minute massage and a wonderful dinner with my husband (it was also our fourth anniversary). The house is now clean and I think I am on the path to recovery (hence, I am updating the blog!).

Some congrats are in order for my cousin and her husband. Congrats to Jessica and Brad and their new little girl Miss Anna Pearl. She is such a precious one and I can't wait to meet her!

Brady is now almost ten months old and is doing the army crawl, sitting up, standing up while holding onto something, and babbling like a crazy man. I am now beginning to realize that it is almost impossible to get anything done with him and the three dogs. So when Brady is down for a nap, I try to cram as much as possible into the hour!

I am going to start going through all of the photos from the past three months, so I will post them as I do so. Here are a few of Brady from the past few weeks.

Brady smiling outside. He has become quite the model for the camera.

"I'm a cool guy."

Brady just starting to sit up.

Brady ready to eat. This was just taken yesterday.

Brady playing with his stacking toy.

Indianapolis Mini Marathon

2009-05-13T13:11:00.003-04:00

Nikki and Brady after the Mini Marathon

I am excited to say that I have completed my first Mini Marathon. Saturday, May 2 was the 2009 running of the Indianapolis Mini Marathon. I didn't do well time wise, but my goal was to finish and loose the pregnancy weight. I did that, so I consider my goal met! I finished in 2 hours 35 minutes. Next year I will actually train and run it for time!

Easter

2009-05-13T13:01:00.003-04:00

Happy Easter!

I know, I am a little behind, but I am trying to catch up! Brady had a good first Easter. He got one Easter basket from us, one from Grandma and Grandpa O., and one from Grandma and Grandpa G.! He is a spoiled little guy. We took a trip up to South Bend after the pictures with the Easter Bunny to spend some time with Grandma and Grandpa O. and Aunt Sara.

The Family

A new summer outfit from Aunt Sara

Pictures with the Easter Bunny

2009-05-07T16:23:00.005-04:00

Our Family

On April 11, Jeff had "Pictures with the Easter Bunny" at his office. The turnout was great and I think we got some new patients! The Easter Bunny was there, I took pictures of all of the kids, we gave out free 5x7s, there was face painting and balloons. If we do this again next year, we are going to have to use the office next to his also, because we ran out of room! At times, there was a line out the door. So, we will call the 1st Annual Pictures with the Easter Bunny a success.

The Easter Bunny in all his glory.

Jeff and his staff.

Brady enjoying the Easter Bunny.

Jeff and Brady posing so I could set up the lighting.

Jeff and Brady posing.

New Pictures

2009-04-06T20:35:00.007-04:00

This coming Saturday, Jeff is having "pictures with the Easter Bunny" at his office, so guess who gets to be the photographer? Brady and I practiced this weekend taking pictures and getting the HP printer ready for some instant prints. We are giving out free 5x7's, there will be face painting and balloons! It will be a fun time and hopefully we will meet some new people in the area. I ordered a pastel background for pictures and the Easter Bunny will be there from 9 am - noon!

Brady's Baptism

2009-04-01T10:27:00.005-04:00

Brady's Baptism photo in his little white tux

So, I am running a little behind on updates : )

I finally changed our winter background and this one will have to do until I have the time to design my own.
In the month of March:

- Brady had his Baptism
- Peyton earned his Novice Shooting Dog title
- Peyton earned the first leg of his Junior Hunter title
- Nikki turned 27 years old
- Brady turned 5 months old
- Lilly was bred for the final time (puppies due in late May)
- Our house is getting some attention (I am decorating!!)
- We are beginning to "plan" meals so I know what to buy at the grocery store and I am not staring blankly at the freezer every night (this seems to happen a lot)

Brady was baptized on March 8th. The Mass was really nice and the priest even held him up in the air to present him to the church. We had a gathering at our house afterwards.

Brady's jacket with his little "tails" on the coat.

Brady being baptized.

Brady being presented to the church.

Random photo (I got some new fun toys for Photoshop that I've been playing with).

Weekend at the Drury Inn

2009-03-02T18:18:00.005-05:00

We spent the weekend of February 27 and 28th in Belleville, IL for a dog show. We decided to the skip the usual Comfort Inn and try the Drury Inn. We always have hotel limitations because of the dogs, but our friends recommended this hotel chain and they accepted dogs, so we thought, why not try it out? Talk about amenities!! Where should I start? We had a 37 inch flat screen with free movie rentals, free popcorn and free soda in the lobby, a huge room (big enough to fit Nikki, Jeff, Peyton, Brady, Brady's Pack 'n Play, Brady's Bouncer, all of Peyton's stuff, and all of Nikki and Jeff's stuff!), happy hour from 5:30-7 pm with 3 free drinks from the bar and food, an exercise room, a pool, a fridge, a microwave, and a HUGE breakfast buffet in the morning. ALL FOR ONLY $64.99/night. Guess where we will be staying from now on!

Besides the hotel, Peyton picked up 2 more points towards his championship. He now has 8 points. He showed well at the Specialty on Friday taking reserve, took winners dog on Saturday, and acted like a crazy puppy on Sunday. Saturday we made it over to Wenzville, MO to watch some friends at an agility competition. Brady did very well at the show and had fun watching the dogs run through the tunnels and jump over bars. The dogs looked like they were having so much fun, Jeff and I got hooked! We would like to start working with Lilly in agility towards the end of the summer.

As you can see from the video, Brady also learned that he can fluctuate his voice. It was pretty funny to listen to him screaming, but of course he learned that he could do it while we were staying in the hotel! Oh well, we didn't get kicked out, so I guess we weren't too loud.

4 Months Old!

2009-02-17T13:05:00.007-05:00

Brady Cole Goedeker, 4 months

I cannot believe that Brady will be 4 months old tomorrow. The time has gone so quickly! It seems like just yesterday I was sleeping right next to him in the pack-n-play every night. Brady is now sleeping in his crib and doing very well. He usually goes to bed around 10:30 pm and wakes up at 7 am without getting up during the night! I know, we need to get him to bed earlier, but if something isn't broke, why fix it?

I want to start listing Brady's "monthly milestones". So here it goes.

At 4 months old, Brady is:

- smiling ALL of the time
- starting to laugh out loud
- can roll from his stomach to his back
- starting to blow bubbles and drool
- starting to grab everything he can touch (this includes my hair, my necklaces, and the strings on my sweatshirts!)
- starting to put everything in his mouth
- wearing 3 month clothing
- weighs approximately 13 lbs. 4 oz.

Brady also attended the Indianapolis Dog Shows this past weekend where Peyton was shown. I had to show Peyton on Friday because Jeff was out of town. I guess we did okay, but we didn't even win our class! There were quite a few Weimaraners, so tough competition. Jeff showed Peyton on Saturday and Sunday, but still didn't do anything. Oh well, we will be headed off to Belleville, IL the weekend of the 27th.

We had a good Valentine's Day and I will be getting a new rug for the living room from Crate and Barrel. It should be in today, so I will take a picture of it when I pick it up. I also have been busy switching our Bellamy Weimaraners website over to a different hosting service so it will be easier for me to update. It is now hosted through Squarespace and is able to be updated just like this blog! So, go check it out and sign our new guest book!

Congrats Peyton, Addie, and Kai!

2009-02-02T10:14:00.005-05:00

This weekend was an exciting weekend for PewterRun Weimaraners (the breeder we got Lilly from). We met up with some friends in St. Joseph, MO for a dog show Friday, Saturday and Sunday. After driving all night Thursday, we made an appearance Friday morning and Peyton won a Major and also took Breed! Congrats to Addie (a cousin of Lilly's) who won a Major both Friday and Sunday, won Breed on Sunday, and finished her Champion title on Sunday! Congrats to Kai, another cousin of Lilly's, who won a Major on Sunday. It was an exciting weekend for all of us and it was even more fun to meet up and celebrate with friends. Brady also made the trip, met everyone and was very well behaved the entire weekend!

Back to work...

2009-01-19T17:56:00.006-05:00

Brady dressed up for his first day at the baby sitter.

On Tuesday, January 6th, I went back to work. It is not going to be bad because I am only working Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. This gives me enough time to clean the house, do laundry, run errands, grocery shop, spend time with Brady and the dogs, etc. on my four day weekend. So far, it has proven to be a good balance. Brady is staying with an in-home sitter on the south side of Indianapolis three days a week. This schedule had gone well so far, so we will see how things progress.

Jeff and I joined LA Fitness because I signed up to run the Mini-Marathon in May. Last week we worked out two days and Brady enjoyed "Kids Klub" while we worked out. We need to work ourselves up to 3-4 days a week!

And I will leave you with Brady playing with his favorite toy, the "Kickin' Bobbin Gym". He has become quite a fan:

Happy New Year!

2009-01-07T10:24:00.004-05:00

Little Santa hanging out at the Hilton.

Nikki with Brady.

Jeff with Brady.

Wow, we have been busy! After the weekend in Effingham, IL (Brady's first stay at a Hilton) we didn't stop traveling. We spent Christmas Eve with Darlene's side of the family in Indianapolis. Brady finally got to sit on Santa's lap. It didn't work out previously because I took him to the mall and stood in line for Santa. Once we got to Santa, he refused to wake up for the picture. I wasn't paying for a picture with his eyes shut, so we just left. After the family gathering, we opened presents with Brad, Marissa, Paul and Darlene. Then we headed off to midnight mass. Brady did great and slept through the entire service.

Christmas Eve with Santa.

Christmas Eve opening presents. Doesn't Brady look excited about his first Christmas?!

Too many presents, it's time for a nap.

Christmas day we went to Paul and Darlene's house. Then Friday morning we headed off to Keystone Mall hoping to find some good deals at Pottery Barn and Crate and Barrel. Sadly, the things I wanted were not on sale, so we didn't end up purchasing anything from there. We did make it to Best Buy and bought a Wine Refrigerator and desk chair. We also purchased a GPS for the Expedition.

From Keystone Mall, we drove up to South Bend to spend a couple of days with my family. Brady received plenty of toys for Christmas!

When we returned from South Bend we went to the Colts game and then out to eat for Marissa's birthday. Happy Birthday, Marissa!

Paul, Darlene, Nikki and Brady at dinner.

Marissa, Brad, Jeff, Paul, Darlene and Nikki at dinner.

This past weekend we headed up to Akron, OH for a 3 day dog show. Peyton won his class 2 of the 3 days, but did not end up winning any majors. We had fun anyway and Brady is adjusting well to our lifestyle! We spent the 3 days at a Sheraton and I just popped him in the sling while we were at the dog show.

We wish everyone a happy, safe, and healthy 2009!

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T11:40:00.005-05:00

Christmas in Effingham, IL. Jeff, Nikki and Santa.

The past couple of weeks we have attended a few Christmas parties. Two weeks ago we went to Jeff's office Christmas party where we went to dinner at Alcatraz Brewing Company and then to a comedy club. Everyone seemed to have a great time. Last weekend we attended the annual Doctor's Christmas Party in Effingham, IL for Jeff's corporation. We took Brady and it was the first time he stayed with a babysitter. Of course he has stayed with his Grandma and Grandpa numerous times, but this was the first actual "babysitter". We stayed at the party for about 3 1/2 hours and Brady did well!

We want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas. Have a wonderful day with friends and family!

Welcome to Parenthood

2008-12-08T23:41:00.007-05:00

If there is a such thing as an initiation into parenthood, it happened this weekend. We took a trip up north for a wedding in Culver. The reception was in South Bend, so after the wedding we took Brady to my parents and headed off to the reception. We spent the night at my parents and drove back to Indy Sunday afternoon.

To start at the beginning, it now takes us twice as long to get ready to go anywhere. After 3 hours of packing, feeding Brady, and getting everyone ready, we headed out the door. We left at 11:30, thinking that would be plenty of time to make the 2:30 wedding. We got on the road and the weather was HORRIBLE. Halfway to Culver, we realized we were going to be late and there wouldn't be any time to feed or change Brady. Not to mention, Brady smelled like poop, so I knew there would need to be a diaper change. We pulled up at the chapel about 15 minutes late and ran in the door right when the bride was getting ready to walk down the aisle. We took a detour into a tiny unisex bathroom to check Brady out. We laid the changing pad down on the floor and put Brady on it. I unsnapped his overalls to check out the damage. Sure enough, he had pooped out of the diaper, through the onesie and up the back of his overalls. While Jeff was holding a pacifier in his mouth (because at this point he was cold and hungry), I proceeded to take off his diaper and clean him up. Just as I took the diaper off of him, he peed all over my leg. At this point, all Jeff and I could do was laugh. After we all got cleaned up, I fed Brady in the back of the church while Jeff caught the tail end of the wedding. Lessons I learned: Always bring ziplock baggies, extra clothes and a sense of humor.

Brady is starting to smile!

Brady's Reindeer outfit.

Happy Thanksgiving and Congrats to Peyton!

2008-12-01T14:20:00.005-05:00

Brady's first Thanksgiving, 5 1/2 weeks old.

Brady has been busy getting used to life! I weighed him last week and he is already 7 lbs 0.2 oz. He has now taken two trips to Bravo! Italian Restaurant, a trip to Keystone mall, numerous trips to Babies R Us, and a trip up to South Bend! Last Sunday we had Thanksgiving at Jeff's parents and everyone was entertained by him the entire time. Then we went up to South Bend and he met all of my Aunt's, Uncle's and cousins. He even spent some time hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa Osmanski while I went out with a friend Friday night.

Peyton is also doing really well. Jeff took him up to Lansing, Michigan on Friday and Saturday for the Southern Michigan Weimaraner Club Speciality and Ingham County Kennel Club shows. Friday he took Reserve and Saturday he took Best of Winners, earning him 2 more points! We are going to try and get him entered in some shows in January to prepare him for the Indianapolis shows in February.

Brady and Nikki.

Brady in a basket.

Brady not wanting to take the pacifier out of his mouth.

Three and a half weeks old!

2008-11-12T19:07:00.003-05:00

Where have we been? Trying to get into a routine! I thought we had a good routine down last week and then the weekend and a growth spurt came and messed everything up! I assume this will happen a lot.

I took some pictures of Brady yesterday in an attempt to get going on his birth announcements. I am happy to say that I feel well healed and ready to get some things accomplished. My mom emailed me the other day and reminded me of how much I have already gotten done since Brady has come home. That is the only thing about staying home that I don't like: The fact that when 5:30 rolls around, I can't look back on my day, fill out my timesheets, and feel like I have completed a lot of tasks.

But, since I have been home, I have already:
1. Sold my car
2. Gotten rid of the sofa that was sitting in the garage
3. Ironed two baskets of clothes that have been sitting in our room since March
4. Kept the house pretty clean
5. Caught up on all of our thank you cards
6. Made a plan to cook at least one new recipe a week
7. Went through about 1,000 photographs that have been sitting in a folder on my computer since last November
8. Learned how to take care of a newborn!

One Week Old

2008-10-28T15:33:00.003-05:00

Brady and Lilly laying on Jeff's lap.

I can't believe Brady is already a week old. Yesterday was the first day by ourselves because my mom stayed with us last week. I was a little nervous about it, but we did really well! Brady and I hung out all day listening to music, reading, eating and sleeping. I even got some laundry, ironing, cleaning and work done on my computer. I think Lilly is enjoying her time out of the kennel all day long and she is being a wonderful big sister!

Today was Brady's pediatrician appointment and everything is going really well! Brady left the hospital weighing 5 lbs. 6 oz. He weighed 5 lbs. 10 1/2 oz. at the appointment today, so he is almost back up to his birth weight! He is now 19 inches long.

Brady sleeping on Grandma O.

Brady punching at Mom.

Brady enjoying his bouncer.

Starting our Journey...

2008-10-22T21:55:00.009-04:00

Brady, 5 days old.

We are finally settling in and adjusting to everything. My mom is staying with us this week to help out and it is much appreciated help! Besides catching up on sleep and trying to heal, I didn't realize there was so much we don't know. Why don't these little guys come with an instruction manual?

Brady, 4 days old.

Last week was a frustrating week! We ended up in the hospital last Monday because I was having contractions every 5 minutes for an hour. Since this is our first child, I wasn't sure what I was supposed to be feeling, so we headed to the hospital. I was hooked up to the monitor and they told us I was at 3 cm, so we headed back home. Last Tuesday I had a doctor's appointment and he said I was at 4 cm. We made my weekly appointment for the following Wednesday and the doctor said since I made so much progress, he would be really surprised if I didn't have the baby by then. I called work and they told me to stay home, go for a walk and have the baby!

With so much anticipation, I was determined to have this baby! Wednesday I got the entire house cleaned and everything was ready for Brady to come. So, of course Thursday I was really frustrated when nothing was happening. Jeff's last day of work for the week was on Thursday, so we went for a walk when he got home. We headed off to bed with nothing happening. Friday I woke up feeling great. We went for a walk in the morning, ran some errands and came back home. When we got home I was starting to have back pain and occasional contractions. We went for another walk, took a nap, then went out for dinner. When we got home from dinner, I was in pain. We sat down and timed my contractions, but the back pain and contractions were getting a lot stronger, so we headed back to the hospital. When we got there, I was only at 4 1/2 cm and we had to walk around for 2 1/2 hours! At the end of 2 1/2 hours, I was having very strong contractions and we got checked again. I was at 7 cm, so they admitted us at 1:00 am! I got my pain medication and epidural, then at 6:00 am we started pushing. Brady came out an hour and 16 minutes later!

Brady meets Mommy and Daddy!

Uncle Brad holding Brady.

Aunt Marissa meets Brady.

Jeff and Brady with Grandma and Grandpa G.

Brady with Grandma O.

Jeff, Grandma G., Great Grandma, and Brady.

Grandpa O. with Brady.

Welcome to the world, Brady!

2008-10-20T19:35:00.005-04:00

Brady, 1 day old!

Brady Cole Goedeker was born on Saturday, October 18th at 7:16 a.m. He weighed 5 lbs. 14 oz. and was 18 1/2 inches long. I will write a lot more later, but I just wanted to get the info and some pictures up for now! We just got home from the hospital this afternoon and everyone is doing well!

The proud new parents and little Brady.

Nikki, Jeff and Brady.

Little Brady.

The little guy, sleeping.

Baby Shower in Indy

2008-10-03T11:42:00.007-04:00

Profile of Brady at 32 1/2 weeks. Looks like he is going to have a long, narrow nose just like Jeff and I!

Well, first I guess I will start off with the fact that we had a little scare a few weeks ago. My stomach has been measuring small when I go in for my OBGYN appointments, so they decided I should have another ultrasound as a "precautionary measure". The good news is that Brady seems to be growing consistently and everything measured out just fine in the ultrasound. The doctor said since I am smaller, Brady is smaller, and there shouldn't be anything to worry about. Of course I had to wait a whole day before my appointment and it worried me sick.

I had another appointment this past Tuesday and I am 1 cm dilated! We are now 35 1/2 weeks along in this adventure. I guess I could be 1 cm dilated for 4 weeks, but at least there is progress. That means I am trying to get the house clean, put things together, make sure his room is set up, and get our bags packed!

On September 14th I had my baby shower here in Indy. My mother-in-law Darlene, sister-in-law Marissa, and her sister, Shay hosted the event and they did a great job! A lot of people came and Brady got a lot of stuff! Below are some of the details:

Shower Invite.

Lift up the vellum and see the little animals!

Plates.

Thank you cards.

Group photo: (left to right)Seelye, Michele, Carrie, Hudson, and me.

Me opening presents.

Weekend in South Bend

2008-09-18T09:34:00.004-04:00

Jeff and I spent the weekend of the 6th in South Bend for the Notre Dame/San Diego State game and my baby shower on the Osmanski/Kindig side. The weekend proved to be a horrible football weekend for our favorite teams (Notre Dame and the Colts), but we saw some improvements this past weekend, so we aren't as worried about it anymore! The weather was beautiful for the Notre Dame game and they pulled out a W in the end.

Brady's baby shower was great. I got to see some of my friends/family that I haven't seen in a long time, eat some really good food, and open a lot of presents! The details of the shower turned out amazing because my mom and my aunts are big into the card-making stuff and they are just like Martha Stewart! Below are some of the things that they made to match the safari theme of Brady's room.

Shower invites with pull-out card.

Centerpieces for the tables.

Advice cards for Jeff and I. Then off to the right are York Peppermint Patties. Mmmm.

Cupcakes that Mom made with little animals on them.

Door Prizes.

Brady's Diaper Cake sitting in his bedroom.

Different angle of Brady's Diaper Cake sitting in his bedroom. Look at all of the stuff he got!

Another angle of Brady's Diaper Cake.

Animal balloons that were at the shower. We drove these all the way back to Indy and they filled up the van. Jeff's dad drove us back and he couldn't even see out the back window!

Baby Balloon.

31 Weeks!

2008-09-02T22:33:00.006-04:00

I am now 31 weeks along in my pregnancy! It's hard to believe that the little guy will be here in about 2 months. We have decided on a name: Brady Goedeker. We are still undecided on the middle name, but I will keep you posted!

Jeff and I have been busy getting things ready. We finally have the sofa out of the nursery, so I took some pictures!

A special thanks to Brad and Marissa for helping us move the furniture out of the room that was previously in there and move in the new furniture. Thank you to Darlene who helped me put up the border, and thanks to Dad for coming down from South Bend for a weekend to help us paint and install the closet organizers. And a big thank you to Jeff for helping with all of the previously mentioned things, hanging the valance, and putting up with listening to me whine about the sofa for the past 2 months! Things are looking great! This week is going to fly by because it is a short week and then we are heading up to South Bend for the Notre Dame game on Saturday. My baby shower is also up in South Bend on Sunday!

Everyone has been wanting to see pictures of the nursery, so here it is:

Me, 31 weeks pregnant!

Crib with bedding that Mom & Dad bought us.

Close-up of the safari animals on Brady's border.

Brady's bookshelf and some of the little animals and books he has received.

The valance.

Crib, dresser, and window.

The closet organizer that Dad and Jeff installed.

Close-up of valance, border, and stripes we painted.

Brady's "Homecoming" outfit that Jeff & I bought for him. My due date is on November 2nd, the day of the Colts/Patriots game. So, we figured we need to purchase him a Colts outfit in honor of his due date!

Streak of Bad Luck

2008-09-01T21:08:00.005-04:00

Over the past few weeks, we have had a streak of bad luck flow through our house. Nothing horrible, but when it rains, it seems to pour.

1. I have already mentioned this first one - Jeff's foot was bothering him so he had to go see a foot specialist. After seeing the doctor, he had an MRI and they determined that he has a broken bone in his foot. So, Jeff has been wearing a soft cast and a boot on his foot for the past three weeks. He goes back to the doctor tomorrow to determine if he can take it off yet.

2. We have been traveling a lot lately and have been driving the Expedition. Well, the steering wheel has been shaking when we get on the highway and start driving between 70-75 mph. So, we took that in and learned that ALL FOUR tires needed to be replaced.

3. While getting Peyton ready to go to the Kansas City shows a few weeks back, we noticed that he had chipped one of his front teeth. To keep him in the show ring, we had to preserve the tooth, so guess what that meant? Yes, a root canal on a dog. No, insurance doesn't cover a root canal on a dog. : )

4. The washer started leaking. Come to find out, I was putting too much soap in the thing and that was causing it to leak. Wonderful.

Other than that, things have been going pretty well around here. Two weeks ago we traveled out to Kansas City with Peyton and Lilly for a big dog show. We didn't win any points that weekend, but Peyton improved every time he got in the ring and won his class 2 out of the 3 days. On Sunday, he took Reserve (which means he was one place away from winning a 4 point Major!). We also got to meet up with some friends - Sharon Manning and Carol & Ken Easterley.

Jeff and I got to take a tour of the new Lucas Oil Stadium. Season ticket holders had access one Sunday evening to go through the new stadium, so we took advantage of it. It is enormous!

This past Saturday we took Lilly and Peyton up to Chicago for a retrieving test. This is the infamous test that Lilly is having a hard time passing. If she would have passed this test, it would have given her two more titles - NRD (Novice Retrieving Dog), and her V (Versatile) rating through the Weimaraner Club of America. She was close, but decided she was too prissy to pick up a duck. She passed the land retrieve with flying colors. When we got to the water retrieve, she swan out to the duck, did a circle around it, and swam back to Jeff. Peyton didn't pass the land retrieve, so he didn't get to go on to the water.

We had a good time because we got to see one of the puppies we bred - Mr. Blue (now known as "Moose"). He looks just like Peyton! The Burens are an amazing family and they are doing a great job with Moose. He is a handsome fellow!

Lilly doing the land retrieve.

Moose with Becky and Peyton with Jeff.

The Burens with Moose and Jeff with Lilly.

The Burens with Moose.

Happy Labor Day!

Wedding Pics Continued

2008-08-21T10:09:00.005-04:00

Since I didn't get a picture of Jessica and Brad up earlier, I had to add more pictures!

Jessica and Brad

Jessica and Brad after the wedding at Battell Park

Jessica and Brad after the wedding at Battell Park. Jessica kept squatting down like this and it looked really funny!

The girls: Krissi, Me, Jackie, Jessica, Amy and Melissa

The girls: Megan, Me, Amy, Jackie, Melissa, Krissi, and Jessica is in the middle

The girls close-up: Megan, Me, Amy, Jackie, Melissa, Krissi, and Jessica is in the middle

Brad and Jessica eating their cake!

The guys singing to Jessica at the reception. Jeff and Dad are in the left side of the picture.

Congratulations, Jessica!

2008-08-12T15:21:00.004-04:00

Krissi and Jessica

This past weekend I was in my cousin, Jessica's, wedding. Yes, I know, the above photo is not a picture of the bride and groom, but of one of my good friends from high school and the bride! I forgot my camera this weekend, so I had to steal Krissi's pictures. Sorry, Krissi! But Jessica looked beautiful and everything turned out fantastic. It was a great wedding and it was fun to see everyone. I was all worried about my bridesmaids dress not fitting, but instead of it being too small, it was actually kind of big. I went through this whole thing of having to go up a few sizes because they didn't know how big I would be at the time of the wedding, then I had to get a lot of the dress taken in. Oh well, it all worked out.

Krissi and Nikki

Jeff and I make a great pair right now. He had to have an MRI a few weeks ago because he rolled his ankle playing softball. We were worried he would have to have surgery, but instead he has to wear a boot on his foot for a few weeks. So we were walking around all weekend together, crippled and pregnant!

We have kept ourselves busy lately. We purchased a new car, started on the nursery, registered for the baby (Babies R Us and Target!!), and have been out of town just about every weekend. Today I signed us up for some classes at the hospital: Breastfeeding, Expectant Parents Class, and Newborn Care Class. I started my Third Trimester on Sunday, so the time will be here before we know it!

Three Years

2008-08-05T13:05:00.004-04:00

Jeff and I celebrated our Third Anniversary last Wednesday. It's hard to believe that three years have gone by. We have been through so much already and life is starting to take off for us. If someone would have told me 3 1/2 years ago that on this day I would have an amazing relationship with my husband, three Weimaraners, a baby on the way, and a great job, I would have just laughed.

Thanks Jeff, for putting up with me lately and I can't wait to see our little one in three months!

Time is Flying By!

2008-07-14T09:38:00.008-04:00

Happy 4th of July! Okay, I know I am about 10 days late, but oh well. Jeff and I went downtown to the Rathskeller to see the fireworks display, so I had to get that up here! We had a great 3 days off. During that time, we went shopping for some miscellaneous things around the house, started looking at options for a new car, and Peyton learned how to jump in the pool and retrieve a ball! We are now confident that he can take and pass the retrieving test! I think he got so jealous of Phoenix that he finally decided to take the plunge.

This past weekend we took a trip up to Marshall, Michigan for Peyton's first show. He turned six months old on Friday, so he is now eligible for conformation shows! Peyton is being shown in the Bred-By-Exhibitor Class and earned his first point on Saturday under Judge Mrs. Lesley Chalmers. Congrats Peyton!

I am now 24 weeks along in my pregnancy! Everything is still going really well. We are getting stuff together for the nursery and we will be registering in a few weeks. I will get pictures up as things progress.

And Baby Goedeker is.....

2008-06-13T22:28:00.004-04:00

A boy!! We had our ultrasound today and everything is going really well. I am 20 weeks along and our estimated date of arrival for baby Goedeker is still November 2nd. He is a wiggly little guy! I started feeling him move last Thursday and there has been lots of movement ever since. Even the lady that did our ultrasound said they sleep about 20 hours a day - and she said we have an active one! Look out Jeff, Phoenix, Peyton, and Lilly - we better get all of the sleep possible in the next 4 1/2 months because it doesn't look like we will be sleeping when this little guy arrives!