Our beautiful son, Linus Leighton Bratcher was born on Wednesday, February 13th weighing in at 8lbs 10oz, and 20.5 inches. He has blue eyes and curls in his light brown hair.  We are beyond thrilled and in love with him!  Thank you for your prayers as we continue to settle in and get to know this little guy!

The days are getting darker and more wet, and we couldn’t be happier.  We have been warming up our home with blankets, bubbling crock pots, and slippers; all the while awaiting the new year and our new baby.  I am 30 weeks along yesterday, and hungry as a bear.  I have been spending my time organizing everything, filling our new freezer with future homemade meals, and prepping the nursery for our sweet son.  We love him so much already, and are constantly laughing at his kicking me – his favorite time to do so is 11:00pm, just in time for bed.  We love to imagine what he’ll look like and what kinds of talents he’ll have.  We call him Little Bean, Turtle, and Buddy.  We pray for him everyday to keep growing strong and healthy, and appreciate your prayers.

I’ll post some more belly photos soon.  I appreciate your patience as the blog is a little quiet these days.  I fully intend to get back in the swing eventually, but have enjoyed having this season to ourselves.  It has been such a sweet and peaceful time in our lives, I haven’t wanted to miss a moment.  I hope you are all having a wonderful Christmas season!  xoxo!

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This morning, we kicked off the beautiful month of October with black coffee, homemade granola, and dehydrated apples.  Our kitchen smells like cinnamon and vanilla, the way a home in the fall should smell – sweet and spicy.  Lots of projects on today’s list, including painting projects and getting ready for some fall parties.

Our baby is kicking all the time now, and I feel like a taut drum.  I’ve been drinking tea by the gallon, my favorite right now being an apple cider tea.  It is absolutely perfect.

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I’ve been thinking about paint brushes and projects for little hands.  Actually, I’ve always enjoyed teaching children how mix colors, and how express themselves creatively, but lately, I am so looking forward to teaching our little boy.  Of course, it will be a while before he can hold a brush, but it’s never to early to appreciate color and shapes. I think I’ll have to restrain myself from making his nursery into a gallery!  Creativity is such a valuable skill, and it will be such a pleasure to see the world through a child’s eyes.

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What a big day yesterday was!  So much celebrating and teary eyes!  We got to see our little baby move around inside me (a very busy babe!) which was absolutely amazing.  We saw two tiny hands and feet, a perfect spine, a little nose and open mouth!  Ten ounces and right on track!  It was one of the coolest experiences of my whole life.

We also decided to find out our baby’s gender, and found out….

It’s a BOY!  We couldn’t believe it!  We had lots of laughter together and with family discussing all things manly, and were joyfully congratulated for continuing the Bratcher name.  We celebrated with blue balloons and Ben and Jerry’s “Half-Baked” ice cream, since we’re almost half way there!  

I am so excited to have a little man around the house, especially since I just adore this baby’s daddy!  He will grow up having an amazing example in Jameson and both of our own dads.

Here our some weekly bump photos starting at week 13:

You’d think we’d get better at anticipating the flash, but that photo booth likes to keep us guessing!  :)  And lastly, not to embarrass our little man, but he was definitely a boy without any question.  He made sure we made no mistake! :)  I can’t wait to meet him!  We feel so blessed.

Getting ready to go find out if we’re having a girl or a boy!  I couldn’t sleep much at all last night out of pure excitement.  That Christmas-Eve-feeling kept my eyes open very late, staring at darkness, wondering who our baby is.  I’m elated, nervous, happy, and shy all at the same time.  

This morning is filled with sunshine and cold air.  It is deliciously gorgeous.  We’ve been having much too lovely a summer filled with many weddings, dinners with friends and family, traveling adventures, and plans for the future.  

One little announcement to share – We’re having a baby!!

An unbelievably hard secret to keep, but wonderful news that has kept me humming and bursting with joy.  We are due in February, so we are just about half way there!  I’ve been folding blankets, and picking up little baby items here and there.  I’m looking forward to fall and winter coming – a time of bunkering down and preparing the nest for our little one.  

Pardon the long absence from writing this summer, I haven’t had much else to say since we found out how much our lives are going to change!  I’m so happy to finally share the news with you!  The baby kicks and says hello often!

For the spring and summer we have been enjoying lavender sheets.  Soft and simple.  Like a breezy flower on hot afternoons, or a cozy retreat when it rains.

I’ve been spending a lot of time in the kitchen lately, making soups and drinking tea.  We’ve enjoyed visiting a few different farmer’s markets these past weeks.  I’ve loved eating juicy stone fruit, drinking local apple cider, and collecting veggies to take home and munch on.  

These past months we’ve gotten to play in the water, get plenty of rest and see friends get married. Summer has been so good to us.