First Bites

It's late, but I wanted to document a first here! Well, a first for baby G.

As predicted, the little one just couldn't wait to start on her cereal, and she LOVES it. I tell you what this girl was ready to eat. She eats with us at supper, and I think she's just so thrilled to be part of the "family dinner" she can't stand it.

I was going to try to hold off, but she was getting to that point where she was just hungry ALL THE TIME and was oh so interested in what we were eating. We've got the rice down, so I'll be trying another one out soon. So far so good!!

And yes (for you all wondering), she is eating in her car seat...note to self: GO BUY CHAIR FOR BABY TO EAT IN!! Night folks!

Angels a-singin'

There are very few things I miss about Connecticut. Basically I can count them on one hand and most of those are just naming friends. But on the top of that list (maybe even above the friends) is the grocery delivery service from stop and shop. BEST.SERVICE.EVER. I kid you not, it was nothing short of fantabulous. Shopping at my computer in my jammies with the kids sleeping. I would schedule early AM deliveries, and my shopping would be done, before 8 without even leaving the house. I was oh so sad to have left that wonderful store behind.

UNTIL...a friend posted the other day that one of our local stores has curbside pick-up, you just have to go pick it up and they bring it out to your car. I was thinking that would be pretty good, then I checked and not only can I do that...BUT some stores DELIVER as well!!! I tell you the heavens opened and a little halleluiah chorus started playing. Okay...maybe not. But it was close - really close. Between that and Trader Joes, I may actually get my kids fed some home cooked (or close enough) meals yet. At least we know the baby is covered...

Yesterday it took not one, but two attempts to get us to the grocery store. The first was a fail and resulted in turning around 1/2 way there to try again later. That sort of sums up how yesterday went...that and this face.

I told him to make his best "angry" face...that's it I guess.

But today was better. The angels from above were still smiling on me. We made it to church, grabbed lunch, and made it to Target AND Home Depot. I got dinner made and all kids were in bed by 8pm. They were even bathed. Oh, and I finally got a picture of all three of my kiddos together, looking at the camera, and smiling - nothing short of a miracle and it only took 4 months...

My heart sings.

I love the way our girl crosses her ankles...she sleeps like that too. LOVE IT. With that I'm off to bed. Oh, and I think we have bats on our front porch?? Not even kidding. Night everyone.

why the blog??

Let me just say there are so many other things I should be doing right now...but I am taking FULL advantage of the fact that the boys are playing (nicely I might add) and the baby girl is fast asleep and one happy napper. My friend Ali posted a post the other day and it inspired me to do the same. So I'm stepping WAY out of my little bloggy box and linking up with Kelly's Korner - (not me - another cool Kelly) and getting into why I do this little thing called "bloggin" and tips for others who may be thinking about starting one of there own.

First a bit about why I choose to blog. Some of you out there may wonder "why does this gal blog??" to begin with. Well that's a good question. It's certainly not because I have expert parenting expertise, or mad awesome skills that I feel the world just wouldn't be complete without me sharing, or that we are just SOOO interesting. No...that would not be it. I started blogging years ago because my best friend Nataleigh told me to. Yes folks, I broke under peer pressure...at the age of 25! In my defense she's very convincing...HA! She had started one, and wanted me to do one so we could read about what was going on in our respective lives.

That first blog is long gone - much like my family life, my blog life has had it's fair share of moves and changes - but I've got "the one" now (I think) and I'm sticking to it. So, why do I do it? Well mostly to keep up with family and friends. Most of you reading know that we're a military family, so we are on the move every 2 to 3 years which means that A #1 we're not close to family, and B #2 we're always meeting new people and adding them to our real life "friends" list. So this is an easy way to keep in touch for those who are interested in what we are up to.

I also blog about my family, so that maybe one day when we look back on this thing, we can remember some of these happy times. I try to keep a scrapbook, but with three kiddos it's hard to find the time. However, the computer gives me a way to journal and include pictures to capture some of those precious moments.

And finally I blog because it's more fun than what I should be doing right now - laundry, cleaning bathrooms and running the sweeper. Yes ya'll - I blog to procrastinate doing my chores. Shameless.

So what makes a "good" blog. Really, I have no wonderful tips. All I can do is share what attracts me to read other blogs, and that is pretty simple.

• Be true - to yourself and let the real you shine through. I know lots of others have said this as well...but I really think this has to be the most important one. Don't try to make it into something that you're not. Be happy with what it is and go from there. It's all about you, so as long as what you have makes you happy - you're all set.
• Have FUN with it. Add pictures, tell funny stories when you have one, I've even posted jokes before that made me laugh. Of course life isn't always about the fun times, but I think it's good to have a mix.

Okay, those are my two main tips. I know...like I said I'm not full of worldly wisdom. But I think those are really important. So there you have it folks - the why's and what's behind our little bloggy here. Hope to see you around! :)

4 month-aversary

Again...I am a week late posting this. Well not quite a week - but pretty close. However, I consider it an accomplishment to be getting these done at all - so there ya go. Last week our little girl hit 4 months - here is what she is up to these days - besides being absolutely adorable.

Baby girl: you are quite honestly the HAPPIEST baby I have ever met. You smile and giggle when you are talked to and just have the sweetest little grin. I could just eat you up. At your check-up you weighed in at 16 lbs 10 oz and nearly 26 inches long. This puts you in the 90th percentile. You are wearing 6-9/12 month clothes now and have moved up to a size 3 diaper. I suspect that (just like your brothers) you will stay at this size for awhile.

The doc said you can start on cereal whenever we feel you're ready - although he happens to think you're not going to wait much longer - I agree. You had your shots and although you were quite ticked off at the moment, you seem to have forgiven me. It also appears that you may be working on that first tooth...such a big girl!

Last month was a busy month for you. You had yet another road trip and are now quite the pro at riding in the car. We all loaded up and traveled down to Delray Beach, FL to go to cousin Joel and Megan's Wedding. It was a wonderful time and you got to meet lots of family! Then we took a few days to stay at Grams and Papa's house, celebrate your brothers 4th birthday, and visit with more family, before heading back to VA. You were a fantastic baby the entire time. You even got some time at the beach and the pool!!


Last week you finally conquered rolling over. You can now roll front to back, and also from your back to your front. You are quite proud of this accomplishment and show off your new trick whenever possible.

This smiles just melts my heart

Other things you love: chewing on my fingers, your "waffle print" blankets, your bothers - oh my how you grin and giggle when they are around, bath-time, being outside, story time at night, and sitting up like a big girl (with help of course). I can tell you're going to be busy and doing all you can to keep up with your big brothers.

Mama's finger - yum yum

You just brighten our day; We love you oh so much Baby G!!

That's about it for this past month. It's been busy and I can't believe she is already 4 months old. The time is flying by. I want it to slow down, but at the same time, I can't wait to see what she will do this month.

The rest of us are doing well. My 1/2 marathon is about a month away now (YIKES) and the boys are excited to start school in a few weeks (I am also excited for this). Baby G will also be baptized later this month - FINALLY!! For now the kids and I are keeping busy while hubs is out and enjoying the last few weeks of summer. But I must wrap this up - we have a missing Little Einstein and I've been tasked with helping to find her...guess I'm on a mission. Later folks.

predictably unpredictable

Don't you just love surprises?? I do. Okay, I love GOOD surprises. Finding a diaper blow-out only AFTER getting baby out of a car seat - not so great. Getting to see the hubby early - SOOO Great!

Last week, we all got a wonderful surprise. It went something like this. Around 4 the boys were outside playing with their neighbor friend, I came in to grab the monitor and the phone rang, the number on it was one that made my heart go pitter-patter (the "boat"). I picked up and sure enough it was my honey.

Me: Hello?

Hubs: Hi! What are you doing??

Me: (squealing) YOU'RE HOME!!?!?!?!

Hubs: Yep, got in today.

Me: But the house isn't clean... (yes folks this is what I said - but in my head I was thinking, "at least I shaved my legs today...")

Hubs: (joking) Oh...well I don't have to come ...

Me: NO...COME HOME!!!! We can't wait to see you!! ...

It goes on from there but you get the idea. There is nothing like homecoming - no matter how long he has been away. The boys and I are just bursting with happiness to have him here. What a blessing. We've had him home for about a week now, and are just giddy. We really haven't spent any family time together since he left after baby G was born, so we are soaking up every precious second we can. Absolute Bliss.

It never ceases to amaze me that for as predictable as the Navy can be, it can also be just as unpredictable. However, when it's a change like that...I'll take it every time.

Fabulous Fours

I know I just did a post for our little baby G, but we also had another very important milestone last week. My "little" munchkin turned FOUR last week. I can hardly believe it. Yesterday he was just a little guy, next thing I know he'll be off to college...okay maybe not that fast, but it sure feels like it.


Little man got not one but two birthday celebrations. A "mini" party on his actual birthday and another one with all sorts of family a few days later. He got spoiled with lots of gifts from his adoring fans.

He also may have spent the later half of the party in his new Cars 2 jammies. It sure it good to be the birthday boy.

It was great to see all the family, even if it did mean putting over 2000 miles on Roxie (our Routan) it was worth every single one. I'm not going to go into it too much because my next post will be about our adventures and I wouldn't want to spoil all the fun now would I??

We will have one more mini-celebration when the hubs gets back, but really that will just be an excuse for me to bake (read: eat) some more cake. Hey, at least I'm honest.

So, to my birthday boy, Happy BIRTHDAY!! We just love you so very much. I still can't believe how much he has grown over the year. The time really does just fly by...

3rd month-aversary

I am WAY behind on posting, and have lots of fun updates. But first, our little girl is now three months - or was on the 28th of June - so I want to post her updates first.

Little baby G, here is what you have been up-to this month. You had a VERY busy month. You took your first road trip over memorial day weekend to go visit daddy, then you turned around and did it again two weeks later for our big move. You now live in your second house, and are no longer a resident of CT! You did an amazing job with both trips, you're quite a trooper. You have your own room now. It's still full of boxes, but mama's getting there. I'll get them unpacked before your crawling - I hope!

You are still sleeping through the night, you can't imagine how happy this makes mama! You're trying VERY hard to roll over, you can get up onto your side, but still can't quite make that final flip over. I'm not sure what you're weighing in at these days, but you are in size 3-6 month clothes, and wear a size 2 diaper.

You are the HAPPIEST baby. You smile at anyone who will talk to you - it's the most adorable smile in the world. You love your bath time and being outside.

You are learning all sorts of new sounds and love to "talk" to me and your brothers. You also laugh out loud which is pretty stinkin' adorable. It's amazing how fast your growing, changing and learning. We can't wait to see what new tricks you come up with this month, we love you to the moon and back sweet baby girl!!