Adoption Collages

There is so much to do for the adoption process.  One of the things we needed to do was create two photo collages.  I guess it is a good thing that I photograph every little thing our family does.  These are the two collages that I created tonight.  It was a lot of fun going back over a ton of our pictures from over the years.  I think we have a fun little family here.  Anyway, just wanted to share our collages with you. 

School is about to begin!

Wow, this summer has really gone by fast.  Being back in Virginia for the summer was great but went by way too fast.  Now that we are back home in Utah we are gearing up for this upcoming school year.  A lot of things are happening this year.  Noah will be in the 5th grade. (Where in the world has time gone.  I remember his 1st day of Kindergarten and the tears that I shed).  Chris is entering his final year here at BYU and will be graduating in April.  (I can't wait.  We have been in school the entire time we have been married)  He will also be commissioning as an Army Officer in April.  Im so proud of him.  And I will be getting my Associates Degree mid November and then starting my Bachelors Program in January.  Noah is playing Football for the 1st time this year.  (Thank goodness it is flag) and then he will do Wrestling, Basketball, Soccer, and probably Baseball.  It is going to be a busy year.  Noah is currently a Webelo scout and is getting ready to start up his 4th year of piano lessons.  Some goals I have for the start of this school year are:


1.  Start Weight Watchers
2.  Exercise several times a week
3.  Read my Scriptures more
4.  Pray daily
5.  Continue learning with my Photography hobby
6.  Read more
7.  Watch less TV
8.  Get caught up on my Scrapbooking
9.  Learn a few new songs on the Piano
10. Complete at least one cross stitch project.


Those are my top 10 things I would like to accomplish this school year.  It is gonna be a great one I know.  We are having a lot of family come in the middle of April to see Chris graduate and Commission.  It is going to be nice to have them here and show them around where we live.  I know that this year will be only as good as we make it so I am planning on making it a blast!

Well....It's Official...............

We have officially started the adoption process.  We had our meeting on Monday with our case worker and are filling out paper work and as of today we all have our physicals done.  Our case worker is working with us to make sure that the approval process goes quickly.  She said that if we do our part she will have us approved by the end of October.  This is great since the process usually takes about 6 months.  Then we start the waiting game.  We feel so blessed to be able to have this experience as a family and are so grateful for all the love and support our family and friends have shown us in this decision.  We will keep everyone posted as to how our process is going and when the time comes we will make our announcement of our growing family.

A little surprise for Chris' mom......

So while we were home we got to spend quite a bit of time with my in laws (who are great bytheway). Anyway, Chris was at Army Officers Training (LDAC) for the entire month of July. His mom thought he was going back to Utah after training and that Noah and I would meet up with him in August when we went home. The entire family on both sides knew he was really coming to Virginia except for his mom. So I told her that we could come over on Friday morning, skype with Chris (who she thought was going to be in Utah), and then we would go out to lunch. Little did she know Chris would be joining us for lunch. Anyway, so I told her that I forgot a flag I had gotten her in my moms van and that my mom was bringing it back to us. So we went outside so that she could take her old flag off the stand and put the new one on. These pictures are in order of her reaction when she looked over at my mom's van......




She just noticed a soldier getting out of the back of the van with a flag. LOL It was great. We were all in tears by the end of the reunion.

This surprise made for one happy momma!

And it was sooooooooo nice to be reunited with my sweet husband after being apart for 2 months.

LOVE MY SOLDIER!!!!!!!!

Our Amazing Summer in Virginia

My goodness, it is so nice to be back home in Utah! We had an amazing trip this summer but I realized that being away from your own home and your friends for 2 1/2 months is a bit long. I did enjoying being with my family and old friends back in Virginia. We had many great experiences while we were home. My dad works as a Civilian on Fort Lee. We were able to take him to and from work most days so that Noah and I could have a car during the day to do whatever we wanted. While we were on post we did some exploring since our life is going to ARMY really soon. Noah really liked looking at all the tanks and trucks around base.

Another great perk of being home this summer was to meet my sweet new niece Addison (Addie) for the 1st time. Noah and I feel in love with her right away. Chris' sister had Addie in April and they live in Arkansas so it was nice to have her in Virginia for a week while her husband, Nick, was on a Mission Trip for their church in Africa.

Noah did so good with her. He is going to make a great big brother one day! He loved holding her and letting her grab on to his finger. He thought it was funny that she didn't want to let go.
And you know I had to get my hands on her since I am in love with babies and then it is even better when they are family. I just love little Addie so much and was very grateful that we were able to spend some time with them.
This is a picture of the Fort Lee Military Branch. My dad is the Branch President of this branch. The branch is for soldiers who are in training for several weeks. We were able to go since my dad is the President plus they needed someone to play the piano for them for the Sunday services. I actually enjoyed playing for them. I just love soldiers especially since my wonderful husband is one too. I loved the branch. Each Sunday was so uplifting and gave me exactly what I needed to get through the next week. Those soldiers have such a sweet spirit about them which was really nice.
Noah and I got Kings Dominion season passes while we were home so we could ride roller coasters and enjoy the waterpark. IT WAS AWESOME! Noah is such a dare devil. He likes to ride all the rides (even the ones that I wouldn't). This one is the drop tower. It goes up over 272 feet and hangs at the top then it drops at 75 miles per hour down to the bottom. I was not about to get on that ride.

Emily and her kids also had Kings Dominion passes so we went together and had a blast. Emily is my Virginia Best Friend. I loved spending so much time with her this summer. All the days at the pool and the girls nights out were awesome. Em is great and I really enjoyed all the fun trips we took.

Here are all Noah's cousins on my side of the family. Bentley (the little man on Noah's lap) is going to have a little brother in December. We had fun at the pool with all the kids. Brayden and Lexi started going off the diving boards this summer and Emma loved jumping into the pool all by herself. They love the water which is great cause we Brandeberry's are water kids.
While we were at Topsail Beach this summer (which is in North Carolina), we got to visit the Turtle Rescue Hospital. It is amazing how many volunteers they have and the wonderful work they do for the turtles.

Noah and Brayden had so much fun together this summer. They are so cute. I just love them.
We went with my brother Jared to have lunch with Brayden one day. Brayden was so excited to see us show up at school. He only knew Jared was coming. It was nice to have lunch with him.
The nasty jellyfish we saw at the beach. Each night I walked on the beach and this was what Brayden and Noah found one night on our walk.

I LOVE THE BEACH!!!!!!!! (Just in case you didn't know)

Noah found a dead crab on the beach. He was in good shape so we let him keep it for a little bit. He was keeping on the front porch of our beach house until the porch started to stink. It was pretty cool looking.
We had a ton of fun this summer. I enjoyed being back in Virginia but am very happy to be back in Utah. The beach was by far my favorite part of our vacation. I ate my guts out with Mexican food since it is very different than the Mexican we have here in Utah. I was grateful for the time we had with our families and wish we could have done more but it is always nice to get back home and back to reality. We are starting our final year here at BYU and I am ready to get it started and see what the future holds for our family this upcoming year!

Topsail Beach Vacation

We are at Topsail Beach in North Carolina for a week. It is so nice being back on the East Coast and playing at the beach. Noah rented a surfboard for the week with his left over birthday money. He is doing really well although he does get a little frustrated at times. He was able to stand up on the board the 1st day we got the board.

Noah is such a great athlete. He is so good at almost every sport and picks the skills up easily. Well same with surfing. He is doing so well. I have enjoyed photographing him while he tries it out. I think by the end of the week he will have it down pretty well.
Here he is waxing up his board. He is having so much fun. There is nothing better than a summer vacation at the beach for a week.

Nice to be home in Virginia!

Well since we have been back in Virginia we have been super busy. Hanging out with all the cousins and eating a ton of Mexican food has been so much fun. While Lexi was at her dance recital I was able to watch Brayden and Emma and we played really hard. Ok Ok They played hard and I just took pictures of them.
The above picture is of me (forgive the nasty hair but it was so hot and the humidity was killing me) holding and meeting my nephew Bentley for the first time. He is super adorable and such a happy baby. He came right to me and didn't cry. I was surprised.
Noah and I have had the privilege of taking my dad to and from work on Fort Lee so that we can have the van for the day to do whatever we want. One day we went to the skate park which was awesome and the batting cages on Post. Noah had a blast.

Of course spending time at the pool is an all time favorite of mine. Noah and I have been going to the pool almost every day since we have been here.
This was the kids table at El Caporel the 1st night we got in.

I love being home with my family and eating at my favorite Mexican restaurants, but Im missing home in Utah too. I have great friends there that I miss and I really like the no humidity thing. Oh well, better enjoy this time I have with my family cause the time is going by so fast.

Virginia.......Here We Come!

It's funny how when we are little we can't wait to grow up and move out and be on our own, then when we are all grown up and on our own we can't wait to go back and spend all our time with our parents.

Noah and I are super duper lucky to be able to go back to Virginia for 2 1/2 months this summer. We will be staying with my parents which I am super excited about. My mom has a craft room with nothing but scrapbooking stuff. I can't wait to spend time with her there just talking and creating together. Of course the beach and the pool are very important places that we will frequent often.

We are leaving in 8 days (7 days and a wake up). I made a paper chain to count down the days and have been packed for about a week now. Plane tickets are already bought and just waiting to be used. Noah is packing his skateboard so that he can skate all over my parents neighborhood.

I am so excited to see all of my family and meet two little ones who have come into the family who I haven't met yet. I am so excited to see my other nieces and nephew too. They are all so adorable. I am looking forward to great friends, lots of food, and great conversation. June 1st can't get here soon enough.
On a sad note, Chris isn't coming. He is taking Spring classes so that he can graduate on time and then will be doing some Army training as well. I know that as an Army wife I will need to get use to him not being around all the time, but this is going to be hard. Chris and I have been married for almost 4 years now. We will not be together for our 4 year anniversary. We won't be together for father's day. 2 1/2 months apart is definitely going to be a challenge for me so I am counting on my family and friends to keep me busy so that I don't think about it too much.

Virginia......................HERE WE COME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Fun Run 2011

Noah's school had a fun run for students and their families. Noah and Chris got 53rd place out of 600+ kids. Noah was super happy that Chris was able to go and he said that Chris helped him along the way. It was a 2 1/2 mile run and they did it in about 25 minutes. Chris is such an amazing father and I am so happy that him and Noah have the close relationship that they have.

The picture above is before the race. Noah was so glad that Chris could run with him today!
This is of Noah and his friends before the race goofing off.
And the picture once they were done. They did such a great job. I was very proud of them both.