Remembering Our Engagement, 12-22-08

Two years ago today, Matthew asked me to marry him at the place we met-The University of Southern Mississippi. It was the best decision I ever made and I am so blessed to be married to the most caring, compassionate, loving and patient man I ever met (although I am a bit biased). I love to celebrate every milestone; helps us always focus on the blessings God so richly pours over us!

Matthew, I am so honored to be your wife! Thank you for asking me to marry you on that cold night on Lake Byron on December 22, 2008. Life is so much richer with you in it and I hardly remember life without you. I love you more than words can ever express; you truly are the love of my life!

He asked me on that bridge in the background.

Right after he asked!

Where we met at Southern Miss; this building was recently torn down :(

Little Tummy Yummies

Just a reminder to all my fellow Mommies/Mommies to be/Mommies coming soon, I co-author another blog about Baby Food/Feeding, it is called "Little Tummy Yummies". I am very excited about the new series of articles we just started regarding breastfeeding! Many of my friends and acquaintances have asked me questions about breastfeeding my now nearly 9 month journey in breastfeeding Addison and so----thus the these articles began. So far there are two articles:

• Breastfeeding 101: Getting Started
• Breastfeeding: Why Pump?

I hope this blog and the upcoming series of articles will be helpful and informative for all you mommies out there currently breastfeeding or considering breastfeeding. As I said in my articles, no matter what method of feeding you decide to go with (formula or breastfeeding or a combo) do what is best for you and your family; that is all that matters!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

We got our first REAL snow today, several inches. Last weekend we got a bit of snow accumulation, but I didn't count it since it melted by the end of the day.

Addison was very confused by this whole snow business. When the snow first came down, we were out running errands and she was just looking at it like "what's up with this rain, Mommy?". She does NOT mind the cold AT ALL, so we stood there a second but no reaction. After her VERY late morning nap I bundled her up to go see the snow. Her gloves would NOT stay on; better luck next time Mommy! Since Matthew was at work, I did not venture into the snow too much. Just wanted her to sit and see. We get plenty of snow here so she will have plenty of opportunities to PLAY in it with both Mommy and Daddy---we will save the fun for when Daddy is home!

SO sweet (even when she is fighting a cold!!)

I love this crinkle nosed smile! I cannot get enough of it; I hope she NEVER outgrows this!

Checking out the snow! YES, that is a garbage bag; I didnt want her lil hinny getting cold and wet!

Even Piper got out in the snow!! She HATES snow!

I think she likes the garbage bag better than the snow :)

I love you my precious snow angel!

Sign Language: FINISHED

HAPPY 100TH POST TOO!!!!

She can sign FINISHED/ALL DONE with CONSISTENCY now; we were so excited!! You can even say finished in conversation and she will sign it. We had been saying finished forever before I finally turned on the camera, hence the delay in her executing it.

She will sign "more" and "eat" SOMETIMES. We are also currently teaching her "dog", "jump", "change your diaper" and "milk"; these she has not signed back YET. We cannot wait for her to sign more, it is SO much fun being able to watch her communicate/express herself like this!!! YAY!!!!! Can you tell I am PUMPED?!?!?!




PS---She had a tiny scab on her head from scratching it with her sharp finger nails, then during her nap just before this video, she must have scratched the scab off because it was bleeding :(

Shutterfly Cards

Since we wanted to include pictures of Addison in this year's Christmas card, we decided to use Shutterfly. I used Shutterfly for return address labels and was very very pleased with both the quality and how quickly we received them!



Knowing how quickly they process orders and ship them, I knew Shutterfly was the only choice since I will be cutting it close to get cards out before it is too late!

Here is what I love about Shutterfly

• Ease of Use: The site is easy to design your own card, stationary, address labels, etc. The intuitive site makes it easy for consumers to create a VERY custom and unique card.
• Efficient: Processing and shipping is FAST.
• Quality: The picture I used for our return label above was far from a high quality picture, but it still turned out great. The font was crisp too!
• Convenient: I did not know this until yesterday, but you can upload photos and have them printed to a target near you, ready for pick up in about an hour. They make it easy!!
  
• SALES: They always have great sales and give aways going on. As a family with just one income (since I am a stay at home mom), I am always looking for a great deal. In fact, by writing this post, I can qualify for 50 FREE CARDS!!! Want in? Check out the Shutterfly Site.

So check out www.shutterfly.com as you explore your Christmas card options!

Some of my favorites:

Little Drummer Girl

Please excuse my cackle on this video.

Addison Joy is 8 Months

Happy 8 months to our Addison Joy!

I cannot believe Addison is 8 months, I just do not believe it; where has time gone!?

Whew, what a month November was! November started off with our first sleepless night, EVER (honestly---she has never stayed up crying all night ever) and the fussiness continued the first few weeks of the month. I felt like I had done something wrong and was at my whits ends!! Finally all of a sudden, the day before we traveled to MS for Thanksgiving (November 19) everything seemed to go back to normal. I was thrilled, but still puzzled. Well, on Thanksgiving day I noticed she was cutting two or three top teeth and a few bottom teeth!!!!! Puzzle solved!

The Stats and Milestones

Weight: Still unsure. My best guess is still about 20 pounds or so.
Height: Who knows!!
Diaper Size: 3 during the day, 4 at night
Clothing: Mostly 12 months some 9 months. It is difficult to buy clothes right now; nothing seems to fit right. There is a HUGE jump in the size of clothes from 9 months to 12 months.
Personality: Ham. That is all there is to it! Addison just waits for someone to make eye contact with her so she can flash those flirty eyes and give them a cheeseball smile. She also poses for the camera now; when you pull out a camera and say "Cheese", she puts up the goofiest smile, as you can see from the pictures on here. She is still very much a pleaser and wants to obey. When she does disobey, you can tell she is embarrassed. However, this girl knows how to throw a tantrum, especially when strapped into her car seat!!!!! Overall, she is a sweet, funny and well behaved precious little girl.
Talking: The only words she has added is this month is "pa" and "mo". She is talking almost every moment she is awake (and sometimes in her sleep too).
Breastfeeding: Wow, 8 months of breastfeeding. I never thought I would make it this far. We are committed for another month (assuming my body allows it). My supply is really decreasing but so is the amount she is wanting. Soon we will move to all stored milk; I have tons stored. I think I am almost ready for breastfeeding to be finished---THINK :) Especially with all these teeth coming in---they rub!
Teeth: As I mentioned above she has TONS of teeth cutting. The bottom two teeth have been in for a while, but now she is getting a few on the top AND bottom. Her teeth cut but then take forever to come all the way in. I am ready for them to be in because it causes sleep and nursing disruptions.
Clapping: SHE CAN CLAP AND ITS SO CUTE!!!! I laugh EVERY TIME she does it!!! See video below!
Crawling & Walking: Amazingly, Addison is able to army crawl and pull all that weight!! Not truly crawling, but she sure can army crawl fast! See video below. She is walking SO well when you hold her hands, hardly wobbling. She can also pull up on somethings, but we do not have many things that would be a good height for her to pull up on....darn :)
Food: Addison has tried so many foods now; I cannot even keep up! Once her teeth finish coming in, I may begin to experiment with more finger type foods.
Independent Play: Before we went on vacation she was up to close to 20 min of independent play in her play pen per day. Now that we are home and recovered from our traveling, we will have to ease back into independent play. Also, now that she is mobile we will start attempting to institute independent play on a blanket. It will be difficult to teach her about staying on the blanket, but we will get there!
Car Seat: We took Addison to Babies R Us to test out new "big girl" car seats. She seemed to be most comfortable in the Safety 1st Complete Air. We have not had a chance to use it much, so I will write a review on it soon.

VIDEOS

Every time I say "clap, clap your hands" she does this.


Army crawler

PICTURES

Standing...not for long before she tips over.....

See...tip over!


Laughing at Daddy. Check out her big ole belly!

Oh how I love this smile!

She was crawling around and found a stick...see the dirt on her face? Oops :)

Apparently that stick was hilarious.