life at it's fullest...

my man took yesterday off from work and we decided to take the boys and my parents to storybook land. we had a blast. last evening we were home after a fabulous day and started having some fun with my camera. in the moment, after major giggles, dancing, singing, jumping, wrestling and cuddles... i realized, yet again, how cool my God is for giving me my family. i just love my boys. jerry, zach and logan are the very best things that ever happened to me. they bring me such joy and happiness. they make my heart so proud and full. every moment together is a moment i cherish. sure, we have our not so joyful days or patient days but God always finds a way to remind me that HOPE continues to be there...regardless. i am utterly blessed and thankful and overwhelmed by these specific presents in my life as well as blessings that include my mom & dad, jer's parents, as well as my sister (& in laws) and brothers in laws and close network of friends. whew! it brings me to my knees.

thank you God. thank you thank you THANK YOU!!!!!



jer and boys yesterday at storybook land...


me and my buddy z...


mr L is my ace of hearts


my parents and boys doing a victory cheer for the phillies... at storybook land


zach coming down excitedly on a slide


logan holding on tightly to papa... his right hand man


my crazy boys together


my favorite people in the world


daddy and zach playing... last night


boys dancing last night...this is an every night ritual. so fun!


silly boys


jumping for glee... love his little face...

disney world

for the past 10 days my family went to the greatest place on earth... disney world! the entire braatz group met out in florida for some really fantastic days. we all had a great time. we laughed, we walked and walked, we celebrated my birthday :), we dressed up in costume and participated in the not so scary halloween experience (a blast!), we saw and did so many fun things, we ate tons, and hardly slept! :) we did enjoy our place of residence too. contemporary has new villas and our room looked over the magic kingdom where we could see fireworks nightly. it was awesome! the time went by quickly and we already are excited about the possibility of a next time. most importantly, we got to spend time together as a family. we all do love each other and it was fun just being together. God is so great!

i, of course, along with the rest of the crew took many of hundreds of pics but here is just a little recap of what we did!

M I C.... K E Y... M O U S E!!!





courtney (jer's sister), adam and their baby girl, tessa



jason (jer's brother), monique and baby sophie on the peter pan ride



the castle from logan's perspective



big smiles on tess in the morning



logan and zach's favorite...especially logan! buzz and woody!



the braatz boys



on pooh ride



z and mickey mouse. cutest. picture. ever



my pirates dressed up for halloween party at magic kingdom



me and zach waiting to go into chef mickey's!

labor day & zach's first day of school

i love september!
the weather starts to change and jeans come into full swing!

we had a great family time at my in-laws over labor day. many great photo ops...

also, on 9/9/09, zach started his first day back to pre-k in his special preschool program. he was in such a good mood when he got up and was so excited to get on the bus. my anxious heart has been praying and will continue to do so for him this year. i have high HOPES that his new behavioralist Maureen and teacher - ms. betty will just continue to grow that boy along side with us! so many possibilities and learning experiences ahead...

new camera...

hey guys...

so, for my birthday (it's really not until the 29th), my man got me a brand new camera. i just love it. he gave it to me early so i could get used to it, play with it...etc...to get ready for our family trip to disney world!

and here are my first few pics... i have the best subjects to practice on! :)

Hershey Happy....

Hello everyone...
it's been awhile since i had a good update due to computer issues that now have been resolved! whew!

did you miss me? :)

so, this past weekend my parents and my little unit of 4 ventured out to hershey, pa before zach starts back to school next wednesday. we just had the most terrific time. i recommend this area for so many reasons...

1) lots of fun things to do
2) lots of fun family things to see and do
3) free chocolate
... and the list really goes on and on...

we went to hershey park and had a blast. it was a bit rainy but you wouldn't have been able to tell. there are so many kiddie rides and yummy things to eat. the following day we went to chocolate world, where of course we got to go on the "ride" and get free samples but the highlight of the day was going to the hershey gardens. it was just beautiful and there was a children's garden section that surpasses them all! the butterfly house was excellent as butterflies flew around us. very very cool.
the final day we drove back towards lancaster. we got to experience a little bit of amish life while taking a horse and buggy ride and learned all about the amish from a very nice amish young man! a special bonus was getting to experience this with both sets of grandparents... the boys were in heaven!

hope you all have had a really nice summer and enjoyed every moment together as a family.

praying for a good school year ahead with many new and wonderful adventures to come...


my little hershey kiss. all rides he could ride showed this sign by them...


hugging mr hershey. he was so excited!


zach enjoying a ride...it's all in his face


on a train ride, having some fun!


how could you not LOVE this precious face? my precious precious one!


my sweet blue eyed boy... i love you!


grandma ridin' in cars with the boy


daddy and z on a fun and fast ride


a moment with my man!


on the tram...


also on the tram...


a sweet moment...


logan waving to all his peeps... :)


down the log flume as a family!


enjoying a sea lion show towards the end of a great day!


L watching the horses while on a buggy


z and mommy stealing a moment! zach loved the experience!

A day at the Zoo

What a fun day today has been! my family, including my parents, went to the philadelphia zoo this morning for some fun together and it just turned out to be the perfect day! the weather was hot and sunny, the crowds were relatively low (we got there when it first opened) and the animals were a plenty and so fascinating! i love the zoo and my boys did too! :) we even finished off the morning with lunch at the cheesecake factory! yum!
enjoy the pics...


seeing the very cool big turtles with papa and grandma


z giving L a hug and L sayin' "cheese". love this pic


hippo - so cute!


daddy and zach


mom and me


the 4 of us...


the boys watching a gorilla. they were amazed!


zach just needed to give that gorilla a hug!


in the children's petting zoo area...being silly


logan and the goat


grandma and zach cheesin' it up! :)


on merry go round at philadelphia zoo


fun little surprise running into 2 of my favorite families on our way out of the zoo! small world! love you M & C!!!


papa and logan on way out holding hands. priceless!


zach falls asleep promptly as we head towards home!