Easter at the Gunnell Home

Last night we dyed some eggs and Brylie loved it!! She was so cute and was so excited to see the eggs change color. Then this morning, we made these delicious rolls from our sister-in-law, Melanie (she has an awesome cooking blog) that are so so good and are empty inside like the tomb that held our Saviors body after His resurrection. Then the "Easter Bunny" came and dropped off some goodies for the kids to find.We have some great friends here in Waco and we had a little Easter Egg Hunt yesterday at a local park where all the families brought 10 eggs per child and then we hid them around the park and let the kids find them. It was so fun and we got some great shots of everyone in the process of hiding, finding and enjoying the Easter Eggs! Thanks guys!! We had a blast!

The Latest and Greatest...

Brody has been learning how to walk and I think we just about have it. It has definitely been more gradual than Brylie was...she just up and went so we are thrilled to add another walker. Better luck next time Dozer.


We also took some time after Conference on Sunday to take some picture in the bluebonnets. They are such a Texas thing and are so pretty and everywhere. We are blessed to live in such a beautiful place! I know we should have dressed them better but, what can you do. I think they turned out pretty good for on the fly!

Trial of our patience

I know I am not patient. Brad on the other hand is much more patient (probably because he doesn't spend 24/7 with the kids). So when Brad tells me he is losing patience, I know it must be bad.

Our dear Brylie is learning so much at the wonderful age of 2. We love that she's so smart however, she is to that point where she knows enough to be afraid of things but not enough to be realistic. I have no idea where she found her fear of "buggies" but she will often say "Brylie scared!!" with a wild look in her eyes.

When we put her to bed at night, she has to layer the blankets perfectly on her bed, no folds or crinkles and often 2 or 3. Then she climbs on top of the blankets (messing them up in the process) and has to situate herself into the perfect place, moving up or down a few millimeters until she is at the right spot. Sometimes, she has to start over, in fact, she changes her mind before we can even complete the task.

It wouldn't be so bad if poor Brody weren't in the crib 6 feet away watching all this pan out hoping that we will come pay just as much attention to him as we "must" to her. He almost always is a crying mess when we are done. So then I have to re-tuck him into bed at which point, Brylie realizes we have to start over and fix the blankets.

Leave her to do it alone, you say? Ah, but doing so only makes her the crying mess and in her youth, her motor skills aren't fine tuned enough to get the required results in a time frame I agree with and she is often crying while trying to complete her ritual. By the end of it all, I have to apologize to her and take a break in the back yard when I leave her bedroom because I am fed up with this obsessive nonsense!!

And then I realize, she got this quirk from me.

Sorry Mom and Dad for the obsessive nonsense I put you through. Remember how I HAD to have my socks on just so or else I'd throw a complete fit before school? I'd like to think you are the incredibly patient grandparents you are now because of it!

A note from the slackers...

This was so cute! We made No-Bake Cookies and I let Brylie have a small unsetup cookie and this is a video of her chatting about it. She is so darling, especially when she talks in the 3rd person!!



Brody is inches away from walking everywhere. We catch him often walking from the couch to a toy just a few feet away and he's becoming more daring every day! He is starting to talk and he will copy the things I say to him. It's funny to see the two kids interact, Brylie is quite dramatic and will say "No, no, mine!" to Brody and he will copy her and make her so mad! It's so hilarious! I just love these kids!

A Gunnell Smorgasbord

This was last Sunday, Brylie was pooped and checked out on Brad's lap in all her dignity! Thank goodness for diapers!

Brylie loves to wear anyone's shoes! Here is a shot of her in my slipper flip-flops!

Darling Brody is our big eater! I just know he'll be our big football player who eats us out of house and home! He will almost eat anything! And he likes to get dirty while he's doing it!

Dozer is being a very nice dog allowing Brylie to fix him all sorts of meals with her play kitchen.

This is my most favorite weather! I miss this and would love it to rain 24/7. Unfortunately, this is Texas and this won't last very long!

Here is a fun shot of both the kids! We can be found at various times of the day down on the floor, crawling around!

I just love the many faces of Brody!

It's worse than being sick...

And what I mean is having sick kids is much worse than being sick yourself. This weekend has definitely been one of the worst as far as health goes for the kiddos. Unfortunately, it was the same weekend that Grammie, Pops and Lisa visited which meant for a vacation out of the ordinary. We just wish that the kids would have picked a different weekend to have the croup. And I must say, I have never known the croup to be so cruel or to last so long! We lost lots of sleep and had one ER trip. But we did manage to do some fun things and had tons of fun while they were here and the kids were feeling semi-ok. Here are some photos to capture our weekend!

Sick Brylie...notice her dark circles around her eyes! She honestly looked like a different kid!

Brody playing at the window...wishing Mom would let him crawl outside! Keep wishing buddy!

Brylie and Pops playing with playdough! Brylie loved this!!!Pops' creations! Not bad!!

On Saturday, Brylie seemed to be at her worst and in fact, we took her to the ER that night. Luckily, they can give a strong one-time dose of steroids to help with the swelling in the throat (swollen vocal chords causes the bark cough we all know and love) and she was able to sleep better and so was Mom and Dad!!! The next day instead of going to Dallas for church at the ward Brad grew up in with his family, we stayed at home and vegged out on the couch while Grammie, Pops and Lisa went.

Monday we were originally planning on going to San Antonio and seeing the sights there but that was pushed to Tuesday since Brylie was still recovering. But Tuesday came and now Brody was getting to be miserable and the whole thing started with him! We did go out to Marlin, TX because there are really neat old architecture there and we wanted to see the wildflowers that are so affluent in Texas! We did see some flowers and old architecture but I was glad we didn't do much more as Brody was miserable and he made sure we all knew it.

And then it was time for our company to go home and we felt a bit robbed. Our time seems to go so much faster when we want it to stop so we can enjoy it!

Anyhow, a big THANKS to Grammie, Pops and Lisa for a fun weekend and for all your help with the breaks we needed with sick kids! We only wished it could have lasted longer! We love you guys!!!

The little homemaker...

Brylie is so darling and growing up so fast. She is such a little mommy and homemaker. This makes me feel good about the job I'm doing around here unless she's watching some other mom behind my back. I was doing the dishes after breakfast this morning when Brody was taking his morning nap and Brylie is always eager to help/get in the way and when I turned around, I saw this darling girl!! Notice the dish towel over her shoulder. I do this when I do the dishes.
I think it's so funny how she picks up on things so quickly and mimics them. Today I let her help me sweep the floor and she did a pretty good job. She also helped me dust and she's a great laundry folder. Heavenly Father knew which of my children to send first...she is such a blessing!!

Santa Finally Delivered...

It may be 2 months after Christmas but that Christmas wish I had for Brody's 2 front teeth (or any teeth for that matter) has finally arrived. I waited a little bit so that they were in pretty far and it would be easy to see them. He is so darling with his toothy grin now and since he's almost always grinning, we see them constantly. So despite the blurry picture, I think this shows just how silly those teeth make him look and prove that Santa delivers (even 2 months late)!! Oh and by the looks of things...braces, here we come!

Happy Birthday to Brad!!

We couldn't let this day get away without wishing Brad/Dad a most happy birthday!!! We are so happy he is ours and hope this day, although he's at school for a large part, is full of fun and excitement. Raa, Raa, Raa Raa Raa, Raa, Raa, Raa Raa Raa, Gooooo Dad!! We sure love you!!

A special day for our big boy...

And today is his 1st birthday!!!
Here is a year in review

His profile in the ultrasound. Fresh out of Mommy (hallelujah)!Brody was a month early and his lungs were immature so here he is wearing the CPAP mask in the NICU to help inflate his lungs at 1 day old. One week after he was released from NICU, he got RSV and was hospitalized twice and on oxygen. This is him finally free of everything at 6 weeks! Here he is in our new home in Texas. He has always been so sweet and smiley! 2 months And bald! 3 months And silly!! And oh-so precious!!! 5 months
Sportin' the BYU cougars! 6 monthsI just want to squish and kiss those cute cheeks! 9 monthsDressed up for church! 11 months

It has been a wonderful year and we are so happy to have Brody!
Happy Birthday Goober!!

Look at those organization skills...

Lately I've noticed some organization skills in Brylie and I thought I'd post about it since it is so cute! Brylie will be a great mom, to her younger siblings (much to their dismay, I'm sure) and to her own children one day. She loves to tuck her dollies into bed for a nap or for the night, she is always trying to pick up or hold Brody which usually results in someone crying, and she is very good at cleaning up after herself and others. I expect her to be a "neat" child as she rarely likes to have any sort of dirt on her. She will complain that she dropped food on her bib and want me to clean it off. Well, the other day we were getting ready to eat dinner and Brad set out the plates, cups and silverware for us to eat off in no particular order or setting and in no time, Brylie had set the table. And she did a darn good job for being 2!! See how easy it is to think of her as older? We have some stacking cups and boxes that the kids love and lately she has been using them as soup bowls, pretend soup of course, but one day she got the kiddie spoons out and organized them and this was the end result. Some days I don't realize what she's doing while she's playing and when I go to clean up, I notice the intelligence behind her play.

Best buds

I hear these two laughing often with each other in fact, I can't put them down for a nap at the same time because they will just laugh and play in their room. I thought this video was so cute and is such a nice thing to see as a parent.


I also saw Brody cuddle the dog after we came home from somewhere. I thought it was so cute that these guys really love each other.

And finally, I gave Brylie a bath while Brody took his morning nap and got some fun snapshots of her just out of the tub.