The Story of the Smiths

A Day in the Life

2012-02-12T12:00:00.000-06:00

I've seen lots of bloggers do a "day in the life" type of post, and I thought that would be fun to do so I can look back one day and remember how Shelby and I spent our days together. Here's a little peak into what our day-to-day life looks like.

Morning Routine
**Shelby usually wakes up around 8-8:30, and I'm usually up around 7...I love having a quiet start to the day! Some mornings, I shower and get ready for the day before Shelby wakes up. Other days, I spend the morning catching up on email, dishes, chores, etc.
**The first thing I do when I go into Shelby's room in the mornings is pick up everything she's thrown out of her crib. {Click HERE for Exhibit A.} Then we change her diaper and head downstairs for her morning bottle of milk. She snuggles in my lap with her bottle while I watch the news. {At least one--if not both of us--are still in our PJ's at this point.}
**After the bottle, Shelby takes her vitamin while watching a DVR'ed episode of Super Why. {She takes a Flinstone chewable vitamin, but she just sucks on it...so sometimes it takes her the duration of the episode to finish it..ha!}
**During Super Why, I catch up on chores downstairs--dishes, laundry, email, etc.
**After Super Why, Shelby & I eat breakfast together then we head upstairs to get dressed.

Morning Activity
**On days we stay home, we usually play downstairs for a bit before heading out for a stroll & then playing outside. But most weekdays we have somewhere to be...here's a look at our weekly activities:

Monday: stay at home day or Kid Swap {more on that later}
Tuesday: storytime at the library followed by playtime at Excel by Five
Wednesday: Early Intervention
Thursday: playgroup or Excel by Five
Friday: stay at home day
Saturday: stay at home day
Sunday: stay at home day
{Shelby working on her craft project after storytime at the library}

**We usually wrap up our morning activity and try to be back at home around noon. Shelby will usually play in the living room for a bit while I prep her lunch. Some days I eat lunch with her, but I often wait and eat during naptime so I can have a relaxing lunch. :)
**After lunch, we head upstairs for a quick diaper change and a few books before naptime commences.

Naptime
**Shelby usually goes down for her nap around 12:45-1ish and will sleep for about 3 hours. This is my precious time!
**During naptime, I try to do all of the following tasks: work out to a video (not everyday, but a couple of days a week), shower (if I didn't shower before Shelby woke up that morning or if I worked out..obvi!), eat lunch, and any chores on my chore chart {which I posted about HERE..and I'm pretty proud of myself for keeping up with it!} for the day. And I'm pretty sure I check Facebook & blogs way too many times during this time, too. Ugh.

Afternoon Activity
**When Shelby wakes up {usually around 4}, I go into her room and pick up everything she's thrown out of her crib...again! Then we do a quick diaper change before heading downstairs.
**Once we're downstairs, Shelby has her afternoon bottle & snack.
**After snack time, we are ready for the "activity" of the afternoon! Our afternoons are much less structured. The only afternoon activity that is set in stone is Kindermusik class on Thursdays. All of the other days, we just do whatever sounds good to us that afternoon! Sometimes we just stay home and play with our toys or play outside, go for a walk with a neighbor, run to Target, etc.

Evening Routine
**We usually feed Shelby her dinner at 6ish. If Derek is home, we will eat with her; but we often eat our dinner after she's already gone to bed for the night.
**After dinner, the Four B's immediately begin. Bath. Bottle. Books. Bed. We typically take a bath every single night b/c Shelby gets so messy with her food throughout the day! For my memory's sake, here are a couple shots of post bath & bottle hair. I love how curly her hair is when it's wet!

Bedtime
**Shelby is usually in bed around 7:30-8. As much as I love Shelby, I long for this time of the day b/c by 7:30 I AM WORN OUT!
**If we haven't eaten dinner yet, we try to do that as soon as Shelby goes down for the night. Then, if we're feeling ambitious, we might tackle a few things on our to-do list that need to be accomplished/discussed together....but typically we just finish the dishes, pick up the toys, and collapse on the couch to watch whatever is on our DVR.
**We often determine our bedtime based on how early Derek has to be at the hospital the next day, but we typically head upstairs around 10:30 to rest up to do it all again the next day! ;)

How We Spend our Days...

2012-02-09T07:00:00.000-06:00

This is how we spend our days:

Shelby absolutely LOVES to be outside these days! She has two walker toys, and we keep one of them as our "outside" walker. Shelby probably spends a minimum of 30 minutes outside everyday walking like this. It's definitely one of her favorite pastimes!

{walking with Grammy while she was visiting last week}
{all that walking is hard work for a baby!}

My Mom's Visit

2012-02-07T13:18:00.003-06:00

I mentioned briefly in {this post} that my mom was here visiting. She actually came into town a couple of days before my birthday. Derek was still in Jackson on my birthday, and she didn't want me to be alone my birthday..SO sweet & thoughtful of her! {Okay, technically speaking I wouldn't have been alone b/c Shelby would have been here....but she had no clue it was my birthday! Ha!} It was SO nice having my mom here. It was a win-win-win situation for all 3 of us girls...my mom got to spend lots of quality time with her favorite baby, Shelby was loving all of the extra attention, and I got to sit back & put my feet up a bit! :)

And it's so nice to be able to share our little life with my mom. She got to accompany us to Kindermusik class, storytime, Excel by Five, and we also took trips to the local children's museum & the Kroc Center (indoor pool/splash pad). We had lots of fun! And once Derek got home, the two of us even got to sneak away for a date night while my mom kept Shelby for us! Thank you for everything, Mama! We miss you!

And yes, we are still rocking the Christmas PJ's in February here at our house. This girl seriously grows like a weed {even though she barely eats anything}, so we have to wear things as long as possible! She is already wearing some 3T clothes now...it's crazy!

A Morning on the Beach....

2012-02-03T08:00:00.001-06:00

Because my hubby is oh so sweet, he came home for a couple of quick trips while he was in Jackson last month. {And by quick, I mean quick. He spent 6 hours driving round-trip for less than 24 hours at home.} One of the days he was here, it was so beautiful outside that we decided to head to the beach for the morning. I love the fact that we live on the coast, so we can just pick up and go to the beach anytime we want!

Shelby had the best time booty-scooting on the sand! She was just in heaven with a huge grin on her face the entire time.

This next picture sums up how we spent the majority of our time on the beach....

We did this about 30 times in a row..no lie. Shelby would scoot down close to the water, then Derek would pick her up and take her back up on the beach...then she would race back down to Daddy and repeat the game all over again. She thought it was so fun!

Then all of a sudden out of nowhere (or out of mid-scoot!), Shelby finally noticed the sand!

She enjoyed playing with the sand and getting it all over herself! ;)

Then it was time to head home for lunch & naptime..what a fun family morning!

Wordless Wednesday: Grumpy

2012-02-01T12:00:00.002-06:00

I had to wake Shelby up early from her nap in order to get to her Kindermusik class on time, and she obviously wasn't very happy about it! ;)

BIG Day!

2012-01-30T22:16:00.002-06:00

Shelby has always done everything in her own time, and she couldn't have timed this more perfectly. My mom is here in town visiting, my birthday was yesterday, and Derek just got home this evening when Shelby decided to do this:

I am fully aware of the fact that I look look like a complete fool in this video, but I had to share it b/c it is a BIG day in our house! We are over the moon excited that our baby girl is finally taking her first steps at 16.5 months old! It was the perfect belated birthday present for this mama :)

Shelby-girl, we are SO proud of you!!!!

Sleepy Baby

2012-01-30T07:00:00.000-06:00

There is just nothing sweeter to me than a sleeping baby.....
{Notice how she is cuddled up with her Wubbanub...so precious!}
Usually when Shelby wakes up in the morning or after a nap, she has to immediately throw everything out of her crib. {I wish I knew what her fascination with throwing items out of the crib--or the bathtub, stroller, highchair, you name it!--is all about..ugh!} She then usually gets upset b/c her paci & Wubbanub are on the floor and she can't get to them..ha! On this particular morning, I heard Shelby on the monitor and went to warm up her bottle. But by the time I got upstairs it was quiet again. When I peeked in her room, I saw all of her stuff on the floor next to crib but she had fallen back asleep...silly, sleepy girl!

More from Jackson...

2012-01-28T07:00:00.001-06:00

All of the pictures in this post are from our second trip to Jackson, which was last weekend. On Derek's day off, we went to the Jackson Zoo. It wasn't the nicest zoo, and we quickly realized that the zoo wasn't the best activity for Shelby at this stage of her development--Shelby loves to be scooting or crawling all the time right now and doesn't particularly enjoy being held or confined to a stroller, grocery cart, etc. I will usually let Shelby scoot and/or crawl on the floor of wherever we are {even if it's Target or a restaurant..yes, I do get looks from other people who are probably thinking we're terrible parents. But we figure it makes her happy, and it gives her immune system something to do..ha!} But not only is the ground at the zoo disgusting enough already, it had just rained so it was also muddy. So Shelby had to be in our arms or the stroller the entire time, and she was less than thrilled. So we kept our visit to the zoo pretty quick, but it was still fun to watch Shelby's first reactions to the various animals and their sounds!

{The giraffe was the first animal we spotted, and he was looking over the fence at Shelby!}

{This was one of the exhibits Shelby actually really enjoyed. I think she liked it b/c the ducks were at her level and right in front of her. It was so cute to watch her observing them!}

{The next picture was taken after we left the zoo as we were on our way to lunch. To say this is a rare sight would be the understatement of the year! We can be in the car for ten hours without Shelby sleeping a wink, and here we were in the car for less than five minutes before we saw this. Apparently a night of sleeping in a hotel and then going to the zoo the next morning is what it takes to get this girl to sleep in the car!}

{After a quick lunch at Zaxby's, here is Daddy reading Shelby a book before naptime.}

{The hotel room that Derek is staying in is a suite with a little kitchenette. Shelby found the drawer with the pots and pans in it and had a blast!}

{The funniest part of this to us was the fact that she has never once attempted to play with our pots and pans at home!}

{Another story with Daddy before bedtime}

We are so thankful to have had two wonderful visits with Derek in Jackson! I can say without a doubt this has been the easiest month of all the months he has been TDY during residency {thanks to a good schedule in the ICU!}. It has been so nice to have little trips up there to see him to break up our time here, and Derek has been so sweet to make a few 24 trips home to see us girls. Now we have just a couple more days until he is home for good! We can't wait!

Children's Museum in Jackson

2012-01-26T12:00:00.001-06:00

As I mentioned {HERE}, we took a little two day trip up to Jackson to visit Derek earlier this month, and we did it again this past weekend. It worked out perfectly. I would wake up early on the morning we were traveling and get the car packed before Shelby woke up, and then once she was up and had breakfast we would hit the road. After the 3 hour drive, Derek was able to help us get our things unloaded, feed Shelby her lunch, and get her down for a nap. Since he was post-call on both days we arrived in Jackson, Derek would sleep while Shelby napped. While the two of them napped, I got to do a little shopping/errands in Jackson. :) Since we were staying in a hotel, we had the excuse to eat out at fun restaurants that we don't have in Biloxi--Jason's Deli & Zaxby's topped that list! So it kind of felt like a mini-vacay! :) On our first trip to Jackson, we went to the children's museum on Derek's day off. We weren't sure how age-appropriate it would be for Shelby, but I am SO glad we decided to try it out b/c it was a-maz-ing and she absolutely LOVED it! Derek & I even had a blast! ;)

{feeling how strong an earthquake is}

{crawling through tunnels}

{going down a slide--pure joy on both of their faces!}

{this was really cool for toddlers--it was a loft area that was entirely padded with little walls to climb over and tunnels to go through..it was perfect for Shelby!}

{this was so fun--a dishwasher & cabinets with plastic dishes to load & unload}

{fun with the puppet theater!}

{Shelby enjoyed this activity for quite some time..it was just a bunch of velcro foam blocks with a velcro wall to stick them on..but she loved it!}

{a life-size scrabble game}

{Daddy showing Shelby how to use the bulldozer to move logs...I'm pretty sure Derek enjoyed this more than Shelby!}

{building a house}

There was a little kindergarten class at the museum on a field trip while we were there, and the teacher part of my heart ached just a little bit. This would make a perfect field trip destination for any grade level in elementary school...there was so much to do for every age, even the grown-ups! It was such a fun memory to experience this with Shelby. She just had so much fun! If you live near Jackson, MS or ever find yourself there for a visit, this should definitely be on your list of things to do!

I will try to get another post up soon about our second visit to Jackson!

Wordless Wednesday: Ready for Mardi Gras!

2012-01-25T07:00:00.000-06:00

Christmas Recap #6: {Our Christmas in Biloxi}

2012-01-22T07:00:00.001-06:00

We had our little family Christmas on the morning of New Year's Day. Christmas was so much more fun this year with Shelby since she could help unwrap gifts {although she usually just ripped off one small piece of the wrapping paper and then carefully inspected it..ha!} and got excited about new toys! But we know it will be even more fun next year when she really "gets" Christmas. Shelby got some new Melissa & Doug puzzles and blocks, an Elf on the Shelf {we will start that fun tradition with her next year!}, new board books, a big ball, and her favorite gift of all--her new princess ball pit!

Shelby loves this ball pit...her favorite thing to do is sit in there and watch Super Why on PBS. :)

And this post concludes our Christmas 2011 recaps...as always, thanks for taking the time to check in and keep up with our little family! We are thankful for each and everyon

Christmas Recap #5: {Christmas Eve on New Year's Eve in Biloxi}

2012-01-20T07:00:00.001-06:00

We left the snow in St. Louis on the morning of the 27th to make our trek back to Biloxi. I was very nervous to embark on the 665 mile journey without the help of my co-entertainers (my mom & sister) as they were making their way back to GA. The drive took us about 12 hrs. The first hour of the drive was pretty rough, but other than that Shelby was such a trooper. We stopped for lunch at McDonald's and dinner at Jason's Deli in Jackson (such a nice treat since we don't have it in Biloxi!), and at both of these stops Shelby was like an angel baby...she was just so happy to be out of the car!

We were anxious to get home so we could celebrate our little Christmas as a family of three, but that wasn't in the cards for us just yet. Shelby didn't get to bed until 9:30ish on the night we got home, and she was such a sleepyhead the next morning! We finally went in her room at 11:15 that morning to wake her up..ha! For the next couple of days, she was just very out of sorts and we didn't want to celebrate Christmas at a time when we knew she couldn't fully enjoy it. So we waited, and finally by the 31st Shelby was starting to act more like herself again! So on New Year's Eve, we celebrate our little Christmas Eve! We put milk & cookies out for Santa and carrots for the reindeer...then we read Twas the Night Before Christmas before tucking Miss Shelby in bed for the night.

After Shelby was in bed, Derek & I treated ourselves to Outback to Go for dinner and then put her presents out under the tree and set up her new princess ball pit for Christmas morning.
Although we knew she wouldn't really "get" Christmas this year, we were still very excited to see Shelby's reaction to her new toys in the morning!

Only one more Christmas recap to go...I think I will meet my goal of completing them all before February! Yay! :)

Wordless Wednesday: All Done!

2012-01-18T08:00:00.001-06:00

I mentioned in Shelby's 16 month post yesterday that when we finish a book, she likes to say "all done!" Here it is in action....

These videos aren't great, but they're much better than what we usually get when we pull out the flip cam..which is Shelby immediately stopping whatever cute thing we were trying to capture so that she can hijack the camera ;) Exhibit A:

16 months

2012-01-17T07:00:00.001-06:00

Happy Sixteen Months, Shelby-girl!
And I hate to toot my own horn, but I will anyways. ;) I was looking back through Shelby's monthly posts, and I realized this is the first time since Shelby turned 3 months old that I have actually managed to get her monthly post up on the 17th..so I am quite proud of myself for accomplishing this in a timely manner for once! {But if I'm being completely honest, the only reason I have it done today is b/c Derek came home for the day yesterday, so I had to do the photo shoot then b/c it is literally impossible to take a decent photo of Miss Shelby these days without an entertainer on hand..ha!}
Sorry all of these pics aren't the best quality...I realized when we were done taking photos that I had left my flash off the entire time..ugh!

We might be seeing some new teeth pop up soon b/c Shelby's fingers are always in her mouth these days!

Here is what Miss Shelby is up to these days...

--You are now taking a flinstone vitamin (cut in half) daily. You didn't love it at first, but now you do! You take it every morning right after your bottle so we don't forget. Since you aren't a good eater, it makes me feel so much better now that you take a daily multi-vitamin!
--You are still sleeping GREAT at night and doing wonderfully with only taking one long afternoon nap.
--You are still a very picky eater! You take 3 bottles of whole milk mixed with Benefiber a day (8oz first thing in the morning, 6oz after your nap, and 8oz before bed...but you would drink WAY more if we let you!). You pretty much eat the.exact.same.thing.every.single.day for meals. For breakfast, you eat a Yoplait yogurt or pureed fruit along with some of Mommy's cereal (Shredded Wheat or Cracklin' Oat Bran--for a picky eater, I can't believe you like these cereals!). For lunch, you have a pureed veggie, half of a banana, and some goldfish. For your afternoon snack (when you wake up from nap), you have a Gerber granola bar. For dinner, you eat another pureed veggie, a Gerber snack (ie. apple wheels), and the crust of wheat sandwich bread (again, weird that a picky eater would only like crust!). During meals & snacktime (and throughout the day), you drink water from a sippy cup. For "dessert" after some of your meals, you eat Gerber yogurt melts. You think those are like candy..you would eat an entire bag of those in one sitting if we let you!
--Also related to eating, you are finally cooperating again when we spoon-feed you! Hallelujah! You went through a phase last month where you would not tolerate being fed your yogurt or baby food in your high chair, which wasn't an option for us since you don't eat fruits & veggies otherwise and can't spoon-feed yourself yet. But for whatever reason, we figured out that you would eat from a spoon as long as you were "cruising" around the kitchen! Weird! It wasn't always easy hitting a moving target with a spoon full of food, but I figured you were getting the nutrients you needed and also working on your walking...so it was a win-win-lose! {The lose part of that combo was the mess I had to clean up, but the wins outweighed the losses!} But I am thrilled to say that you are finally cooperating and eating all of your meals within the confines of your high chair..you still don't love it, but you tolerate it!
--You are really enjoying playing outside these days!
--At your evaluation for Early Intervention a couple of weeks ago, one of the questions they asked me was if you could crawl up stairs. I promptly answered that you could not, but the more I kept thinking about it I really didn't know if it was something you could or couldn't do b/c you had never shown any interest nor was it something that I thought I was "supposed to" teach you. That afternoon when we got home, I put you in front of the stairs and you just stared at them like you had no clue what I wanted you to do. So I showed you how to crawl up the first stair, and after that you zoomed up the rest of the stairs in no time at all! I was quite proud!
--You are pretty much at same stage in the walking department as you were last month. You will stand for a few seconds on your own and get really proud of yourself, but you don't really show interest in taking steps on your own. You'd rather play it safe and sit down to scoot or crawl to get anywhere. But you have taken 1-3 unsteady steps a couple of times on your own! You still do well walking if you are holding both of our hands, but you are getting better with only holding one hand.
--You have really started to enjoy your walker toys this month. Up until now, they have frustrated you b/c the wheels would go faster than your little feet could keep up. But now you are a pro! We keep one of your walkers as your "outside" toy and the other one stays inside the house, and you love them now! When we go outside to use your walker, I carry you in one arm and the walker in the other hand until we get down to the sidewalk {I usually don't like for you to push the walker down the driveway b/c it's a downhill slope, and it goes too fast for you}, and you pitch a fit until I put you down to do it by yourself!
--This month, you started the Early Intervention program called "First Steps."
--You are not a very lovey, cuddly type of baby, but we taught you how to hug this month...and you will sometimes comply when we ask for a hug...but only sometimes! ;)
--I don't know if we can call it your first "official" word or not, but you can now say "baby!" We have a bunch of family pictures on our stairwell, and whenever we go up or down the stairs with Shelby we often stop and point out family members in pictures and say their names to Shelby. Whenever we point to a picture of her in a picture, we always say "baby" or "Shelby." Well, one day we pointed to a picture of her and said "baby," and she repeated it! She did it again several times over the next couple of days, and we kept positively reinforcing it. Well, don't you know that pretty soon every single person we pointed to in a picture soon became "baby"...and now, if we point to any frame (even if there's not a picture of a person in the frame, Shelby says "baby." So apparently baby and frame are synonymous...who knew?!
--This seems strange, but one of your favorite things to do to comfort yourself is put something close to your eye. When you are getting ready for bed, you like to keep your pacifier or your Wubbanub by your eye...it's so weird, but we think it's the cutest thing! {You started to get fussy towards the end of our photo shoot, so we gave you your pacifiers...and you immediately did this!}

--This month, whenever we finished reading a book or whenever you closed a book after playing with it, you would throw your hands up in the air as if to say "all done." Now whenever we say "all done," you often put your hands up in the air automatically. When we said we were all done with pictures, you immediately put your hands up as if you agreed!

Hotel Fun!

2012-01-14T22:48:00.004-06:00

Remember how much fun we had staying in a hotel with Shelby when she was six months old? In case you need a little refresher on how miserable it was, you can click HERE. Oh, but times have changed. Shelby now loves hotels! Who knew?!

We took a quick little two-day trip up to Jackson to visit Derek and stayed with him in his hotel room there. Shelby napped great and slept in till 8 both mornings..she loved exploring everything in the hotel room {my favorite part was that she could open and close all the drawers & cabinets b/c there wasn't anything in them!}..but this was hands-down the reason she loved the hotel so much....
She loved walking back and forth down the long empty hallways of the hotel over and over and over again. Shelby always gets so frustrated using her walker at home b/c she's always running into furniture or a wall or something. But this was perfect for her! Several times while we were sitting in the hotel room, she would get her walker and just walk it over to the door as if she was asking if she could go out in the hall..it was hilarious how much she enjoyed this!

Laundry and unpacking awaits me, but hopefully I'll be back soon to {finally} finish up our Christmas recaps and fill you in on our trip to Jackson!

"First Steps"

2012-01-11T09:00:00.001-06:00

At Shelby's 12 month check-up with the pediatrician, she was recommended for Early Intervention for her gross motor & communication skills. I never mentioned it on the blog before b/c I was just very emotional about the whole situation, and even the idea of trying to put my thoughts into words was overwhelming. I kept thinking it was somehow my fault that Shelby hadn't reached certain milestones yet...if I just would have done x, y, or z she would have already been walking or talking. I kept thinking that I had somehow failed her.

Mississippi's Early Intervention program is called "First Steps." The referral process took way longer than it should have, but we finally had our first meeting with First Steps back in early December--just a mere 2.5 months after the referral was initially made. They came to our house when Shelby was napping, and I answered a plethora of questions ranging from me & Derek's background to my pregnancy to Shelby's first months of life and signed a bunch of forms.

The next step in our First Steps journey was this past Friday. We had to go to the Health Department for Shelby's formal evaluation. To say I was nervous about the appointment would be the understatement of the year. I was nervous as to how Shelby would "perform," and I was even more nervous to hear what they would have to say about my baby. The evaluation basically consisted of Shelby playing while six different professionals (physical therapist, speech/language pathologist, occupational therapist, etc) closely observed her. I sat with Shelby the whole time as she played, and they asked me a few questions about her development while they were observing her. Thankfully, Shelby was in a great mood throughout the entire appointment and she was totally comfortable with all of the ladies that worked with her. The physical therapist even got a few laughs out of Shelby!

I knew it would be hard to hear someone--much less six different people--make evaluative comments about my little girl, but I really had no idea how hard it would actually be. I was able to keep it together during the appointment, but I just broke down once I got into the car. More tears were shed when I called Derek to tell him how it went. {I hated that he couldn't be there with me for this appointment--he is in Jackson this month.} But I truthfully couldn't have been happier with how the evaluation went. Because Shelby was in such a good, cooperative mood, she really gave them a very accurate representation of what she is capable of. And the ladies we worked with were all so nice, and they genuinely enjoyed Shelby. The only time Shelby got fussy at all was at the very end when they were sharing her results with me--she couldn't understand why all of a sudden everyone stopped playing with her..ha!

We knew going into the evaluation that the criteria for qualifying for First Steps was a 25% or more deficiency in one or more of the six areas of development. I can't remember what Shelby's exact results were--I was trying to wrestle a squirmy 15 month old who wanted attention--but we will get them in the mail sometime soon. However, we did meet the criteria to qualify for the program. Shelby will start receiving occupational therapy once a week, and she will receive services once a week from a teacher to work on her communication skills, I think. Again, it was a lot of information thrown at me all at once! {Something interesting I learned at this appointment is that kiddos who are slow to hit their gross motor milestones will more than likely be slow to hit verbal milestones as well...they told me that little ones like Shelby are spending all their time & energy trying to figure out how to walk that their communication is subsequently put on the back burner.} From what I understand, they will come to our house to provide services for Shelby, but I'm not sure how long it will take before it starts up.

I knew going into the evaluation that no matter what the results were that it was going to be bittersweet for me. Part of me wanted Shelby to qualify for the program b/c the services could only benefit her, but the other part of me just ached. I didn't want them to tell me that our baby girl was "behind" or that something was "wrong" with her. I'm still very emotional about the whole situation, but I know we have one very smart & cute little girl on our hands who will undoubtedly walk & talk at some point..she will just do it in her own time! But no matter what, we love her so much and are incredibly proud to be her parents!

Christmas Recap #4 {More of St. Louis}

2012-01-09T18:00:00.001-06:00

Bear with me, but here is the 4th of 6 total {I think} Christmas recaps...so only two more to go after this post! Here are the rest of the photos of our time in St. Louis. The first four pics are from my Aunt Claudene's {my mom's sister} house, and the remainder of the pics are all from my Aunt Diane & Uncle Steve's {my dad's brother} house where we stayed while we were there. Here we go....

{my sister, Shelby, and me with our two cousins & 4 of their 8 kiddos}

{my mom & my Aunt Claudene}

{me & my sister with our cousins}
Do you see the top of Miss Shelby's head at the bottom of the picture? In case you missed her, she is pulling on my legs for me to pick her up..clingy much? Haha!

{Shelby & Ella playing--Ella, my cousin Nikki's youngest kiddo, is 3 mo. older than Shelby}

{this is how the majority of our down time at Aunt Diane & Uncle Steve's house was spent...my cousins Lauren & Rachel love to play video games, and Derek was happy to join in the fun!}

{my cousins Lauren & Rachel with Shelby}

{Shelby was having fun climbing over Lauren}

{this is how Shelby spent the majority of her time...being very clingy to Mommy & Daddy!}

{On the morning we were leaving St. Louis, we woke up to snow! I'm sad we were in such a hurry to get our long journey back to Biloxi underway--but understandably so--b/c we didn't have the time to let Shelby experience it! This was her first snow and probably her last for quite some time considering the fact that we live on the Gulf Coast!}

Christmas Recap #3 {St. Louis}

2012-01-07T21:30:00.001-06:00

On the 22nd of December, we loaded up the cars and make the trek from my parents' house in GA to St. Louis! We took two cars and caravanned, which worked out really well. My dad & Derek did all of the driving while my mom, sister, & I took turns being the entertainer for Shelby. {Since she does not sleep at all in the car, it takes a lot of entertaining and a lot of patience in order to get through long drives with her. I was SO thankful to have my mom & sister's help!}

Both sides of my family live in the St. Louis area {my immediate family are the only ones on either side not living there}, so we spent many Christmases there when my sister & I were younger. This was Shelby's very first visit to St. Louis and her first time to meet the majority of our extended family, so this was a very special trip. But I will be honest and say it certainly wasn't easy. This was first the time we have taken Shelby to multiple different locations on one trip {AL-->GA-->MO}, and by this third and final leg of our trip it was starting to take its toll on her. Throw in her cold & teething on top of it, and Shelby was just all out of sorts. She slept well while we were there, but she just wasn't her usual self...way more whiny & clingy than normal. I can totally understand why she was acting that way, but that didn't make it any easier to deal with. But even though it wasn't easy, we are SO glad we went. There's just nothing like spending Christmas with family.

It was a busy couple of days in St. Louis! For my memory's sake, here's the run-down of how we spent our days...
--Dec. 23rd: rested up from our long day of traveling, drove through Lone Elk Park in the afternoon, and then went to my Aunt Claudene & Uncle Michael's house that evening..my cousins Nikki & Katie have 8 kids between the two of them, so it was fun, chaotic night!
--Dec. 24th: Paul's donuts at Aunt Claudene's in the morning, Christmas Eve service (Shelby & I hung back for naptime), party at Uncle Danny's
--Christmas Day: family brunch & Christmas dinner at Aunt Diane & Uncle Steve's
--Dec. 26th: visited with my mom's best friend's from high school in the morning, then party at my Aunt Diane & Uncle Steve's house for Mizzou's bowl game and lots of Euchre afterward! :)

For whatever reason, I didn't do a very good job of remembering to bring my camera with me everywhere we went while we were in St. Louis. But I did get a lot of shots of the Christmas Eve party at my Uncle Danny's...

{the entire Schumacher fam}

{my immediate family}

{it's probably not the safest toy in the world, but Shelby loves to play with my Diet Coke cans after I drink them...and Derek thought it was hilarious when she started playing with his beer can and pretending to drink out of it! ha!}

{Shelby & Grampy playing with her new bear from Grandma Jane}

{helping Shelby open all of her gifts!}

{playing White Elephant!}

{Dad got a motorcycle nightlight!}

{opening a present from Aunt Diane & Uncle Steve}

{playing with her "Beachy Santa Claus"--perfect for Biloxi--that sings & dances from Aunt Karen & Uncle Lee}

{loving on Minnie Mouse that the Bergers gave her}

{playing with Mrs. Berger, my Aunt Diane's mom}

{Grandma Jane posing with all 6 of her boys}

{Shelby being silly with Grammy & Auntie Em}

{Shelby & Claire, my cousin's little girl, were fascinated with my sister's phone}

{Grandma Jane & sweet Claire}

{all the kiddos opening gifts}

{Shelby & Claire playing together}

{Shelby & Grampy playing..love the look on my dad's face in this one!}

{dinner time!}

{my cousins Lauren, Hannah, & Rachel playing the piano--they are all amazing at it!}

{more fun with the phone!}

I have a few pictures from our time in St. Louis, but I will leave it at that for now! Hopefully I will be finished up with all of these Christmas recaps before it's February...ha!

Motherhood

2012-01-05T21:43:00.002-06:00

I came across this post, and it was JUST what I needed tonight..such a refreshing & authentic take on motherhood. Definitely worth the read!

Wordless Wednesday: Long Hair

2012-01-04T15:36:00.003-06:00

Is it weird that my kid likes to drink water out of the bottle that we use to rinse her hair? At least it's clean water she's drinking..that makes it better, right?!

Christmas Recap #2 {Georgia}

2012-01-02T21:53:00.006-06:00

I will give you fair warning--this post is very wordy with not very many pictures! But I wanted to record all of this for memory's sake. This leg of our trip definitely had some highs and lows....

{not the best pic ever...but you can see those top two teeth! and I love how the color of Shelby's eyes is so clear!}

After our fun weekend in Birmingham with Derek's fam, we packed up the car and headed to my parents' house in GA on the morning of Monday the 19th. It was only about a two and a half drive, and it seemed like such a piece of cake in comparison to the rest of the drives on our trip! We got to my parents' house with plenty of time to feed Shelby her lunch and get her down for a nap at a decent time. While Shelby napped, I went to run some errands with my mom including a stop at Kohl's so I could buy a black shirt for Derek. We found out while we were in Birmingham that a close family friend had passed away, and of course we didn't realize when we packed for our trip that we would need clothes appropriate for a funeral. Our neighbors that lived behind us growing up had two kids a little bit older than my sister & me. I was very good friends with Yoke when we were younger, and I can remember feeling so cool in high school when her older brother drove us to high school my freshman year. My mom & their mom became very good friends over the years, and our dads rode motorcycles together. Linda (their mom) hosted a bridal shower AND baby shower for me. All of that to say, we were very close with this family and devastated to hear the news that their dad had passed away. But I was so thankful that Derek, Shelby, and I were all able to be at the service to honor his memory.

We were only in GA for 2.5 days, but we did manage to squeeze in lots of fun! I got to have a little girls night with two of my dearest friends from high school, and my mom kept Shelby one evening while Derek & I double-dated with two of our best friends. Our abs were literally sore that night from laughing so hard. The other highlight of our time in GA was doing Christmas with my family! We always have so much fun together, but Shelby definitely brings a whole new level of fun into the mix!

Shelby is sitting on her new picnic table from Grammy & Grampy..she looks so grown up sitting at the table playing with her toys!!

Another low point of this trip was Shelby getting sick. Traveling + teething + getting sick = one miserable baby. Shelby seemed just fine on our drive to GA Monday morning, but that night is when it hit. I had left to meet my friends at Starbucks that evening, and my mom was going to put Shelby to bed for the night. She went to bed just fine but then woke up about an hour later screaming inconsolably. {It was such a terrible feeling when Derek called me--he called wanting to know where I packed Shelby's tylenol--to know that my baby was in pain and that I wasn't there for her.} I can't even remember the last time Shelby hadn't slept through the night, so for her to not only wake up but wake up screaming...I knew it was bad, and I raced home to her. She has had a little cold or two before, but nothing like this. It was very rough on her and me! She woke up screaming again the second night we were there, but thankfully the third night--which was the night before our long drive to St. Louis--was more restful for everyone. But I must admit, we were all nervous about making the long drive {Derek, Shelby, and I were caravaning to St. Louis with my mom, dad, and sister} with a sick baby, but we made it there just fine thanks to all of their help! And because Shelby is such a good sharer, all six of us ending up getting sick by the end of our trip! ;)

Highlights of 2011

2011-12-31T14:00:00.002-06:00

I did a "Highlights of 2010" post last year, and I thought it would be fun to do it again this year. When I reflect back on these past two years, what stands out the most to me is how drastically different the years are. 2010 was the year of changes for us--I left a job I loved, we moved from Northern VA to the Gulf Coast, Derek finished up med school & started his residency, and WE HAD A BABY. 2010 was a wonderful year for us, and all of those changes were truly blessings in our lives...but that doesn't mean those changes weren't hard. The themes of 2010 were changes and readjustment. Thankfully the themes of 2011 have been finding our new "normal" and settling into our little life as a family of three here in Biloxi.

When I think back to this time last year, we were still sleep-deprived first-time parents of a newborn who were just trying to make it from day to day..and find time to shower every now and again! SO much has changed since then. {Although sometimes I still struggle to find time to shower, but I suppose that's just life with small children! Ha!} I feel more confident now in my role as a stay-at-home mama, Derek is still enjoying his residency {and doing quite well at it, if I do say so myself!}, and Miss Shelby is growing, learning every day, and just as cute as ever...so I'd say 2011 was a pretty good year!

{The Highlights Pictured in the Video}
Shelby's first time on a swing
First time feeding Shelby solids
Shelby's first Easter
Swim Lessons
Pennsacola Retreat with Keesler
Visiting the Biloxi Lighthouse
Shelby's First Birthday!
Our trip to Ormond Beach
Seattle
Christmas in Birmingham

{The Highlights NOT Pictured in the Video..but they're still pretty Important}
Derek being named Intern of the Year
Shelby got a cousin!
Got to see the Blue Angels fly over our house!
Joining a Play Group
Getting to spend Christmas in AL, GA, & MO!
Weekend Beach Trip with Derek's sister
Kindermusik
Visiting the NOLA Aquarium with Grammy
Getting to go to a UGA game!

What a year! And even though it is New Year's Eve, it will be Christmas Eve in our house tonight since we still haven't done our little Christmas with Shelby at home yet. {We were traveling on Christmas, and she has kind of been out of sorts the past couple of days...so we wanted to wait to do Christmas until she could really enjoy it.} So once we read 'Twas the Night before Christmas and put out treats for Santa, we will tuck Shelby in bed and Derek & I will enjoy a quiet evening together at home. We are looking forward to it....so happy Christmas & New Year's Eve!! :)

Christmas Recap #1 {Birmingham}

2011-12-30T12:00:00.000-06:00

On Friday the 16th, we packed up the car and were Birmingham-bound as soon as Derek got home from work. Derek's sister, her hubby, and their baby girl were kind enough to host us for the weekend at their home. We got to their house late Friday night, and we had a not-so-fun surprise awaiting us upon our arrival. Shelby had somehow leaked all the way through her diaper & pants and onto her carseat. Unbeknown to me, I picked her up the urine quickly soaked through the hoodie I was wearing. After a late night five hour drive with a baby who won't sleep in the car, that was the last thing we needed! But aside from that little mishap, we had a wonderful weekend! Derek's dad & step-mom made the drive from Stone Mountain, GA to spend Saturday afternoon with us in Birmingham. And then on Saturday night, Derek's mom & step-dad arrived and stayed through Sunday. Here are a few {out of order} pictures from the weekend!

{Granddad & Grandma with their granddaughters}

{BooBoo reading to Shelby}

{A coupe of days before this weekend, Shelby had just started standing on her own for a few seconds at a time. She always gets so proud of herself when she realizes she's standing on her own..it's SO cute!}

{One of Shelby's favorite pastimes is to play catch. It was so cute to watch her do it with her cousin!}

{Shelby helping her Daddy & Uncle Lucas...apparently it takes a doctor, a lawyer, and a baby to mount a TV!}

{Pop-Pop & Shelby}

{working on our annual Christmas craft--Derek's mom is very creative and always has a new craft for us to do each year. We get very competitive!}

{the ultimate back scratcher}

{BooBoo & Pop-Pop with their granddaughters}

{Shelby & Elly having lots of fun climbing over Daddy/Uncle Derek}

As you can tell from these pictures, it was such a fun-filled family weekend! It was so special to celebrate Elly's first Christmas with her and to see Shelby & Elly experience Christmas together! I love that they are so close in age...it is so fun to watch them grow up together!

Christmas Recap #2 will be coming soon...hopefully! :)

Wordless Wednesday: Christmas in Birmingham!

2011-12-28T08:00:00.001-06:00

Shelby {15 mo.} & Cousin Elly {10 mo.}

After eleven days of traveling & holiday fun, we are finally back home safe & sound in Biloxi! As soon as we get unpacked and settled back into life at home, you can expect lots more Christmas pictures & recaps to come your way over the next few days! :)

Checking in....

2011-12-26T13:38:00.004-06:00

Sorry things have been a bit quiet on the ole blog lately, but we have been BUSY! Derek's last day of work for 2010 was Friday the 16th, and that evening we were Birmingham-bound! We spent the weekend with Derek's family and had a GREAT time. When Monday morning rolled around (the 19th), we packed up and made our way over to my parents' house in GA. We spent a couple of days there before heading up to St. Louis on the 22nd. It has been a whirlwind in every sense of the word, but oh so fun! Nothing makes it feel more like Christmas than being with family.

We had two rounds of Christmas in Birmingham, celebrated Christmas in GA with my fam, and I think I lost count after 6 Christmas parties here in St. Louis. We have had a blast with our family..especially introducing Miss Shelby to our family here in St. Louis for the very first time. But between the long drives, teething, coming down with a bad cold, and being out of her regular routine for ten days...I know Shelby {and her Mommy & Daddy, too!} will be happy to get back home. Not to mention, we still have our Biloxi Christmas waiting for us! But we have one more party today before we head back to Biloxi tomorrow. The Schumacher family is all coming over to my Aunt Diane & Uncle Steve's today to watch the Independence Bowl b/c Mizzou is playing.

{Thanks for the pics, Auntie Em!}

We will cheer for Mizzou today b/c we always cheer for our fellow SEC teams. {It's still so hard to believe Mizzou will actually be a part of our conference soon...this is not the South, y'all! And the fact that my daughter who never wears a coat or shoes had to wear a heavy coat and boots today proves it..ha!} But next year when we actually play Mizzou, Shelby will not be loving on this ugly tiger. She will be wearing her red and black and calling the Dawgs!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T07:00:00.001-06:00

Merry Christmas from the Smiths!

{Enjoy our 2011 Christmas card}

{and here's the back}

15 Months

2011-12-21T14:42:00.002-06:00

{fifteen months!}

{love the cheesy smile in the pic below!}

{trying to get the camera from Mommy in the next pic}

Here's what Miss Shelby is up to these days...

--Shelby has learned the "so big" game..it's so cute to see her put her little hands up over her head when we ask her "how big is Shelby?"
--Your favorite toys right now seem to be anything that involves music/instruments, balls, puzzles, and Shelby has recently started playing with/"reading" her books by herself.
--You are very into opening/closing drawers, cabinets, doors, etc. You usually don't get into whatever is inside the drawer/cabinet/closet/etc...unless of course it is the kitchen towel drawer, then you have to pull them all out one by one..ha!

--gaining your confidence with cruising everyday!

--your top two teeth are getting bigger everyday!

--we are still battling the "dropsies," but I feel like it's gotten a bit better this month

--starting to stand for a couple of seconds at a time! When you first started doing it, it was always when you weren't thinking about or were distracted...and as soon as you realized you were standing unassisited you would get nervous and sit down. But now, you are aware you can do it and you get so proud of yourself when you stand on your own!

--attempting to stack blocks on top of one another...you are very focused and determined when you do this!

--and we learned this month that you love to put items into containers one after another...it's very methodical and cute!

And this last picture isn't the best, but you can kind of see Shelby's top teeth!

Snuggling

2011-12-15T19:00:00.000-06:00

Shelby has never been a very lovey/cuddly/snuggly type of baby. She just wasn't wired that way. And although Shelby has been able to hold her bottle on her own for some time now, we still keep her in our laps whenever she has a bottle b/c it's an easy way to sneak in some snuggle time! But aside from when Shelby's drinking a bottle, snuggles are a very rare occasion. But one afternoon last week after her nap, Shelby was in the mood to snuggle & I was glad that Daddy was home to capture the moment since we have very few pictures like this!

And as you can tell from the picture, Shelby was probably only snuggling me so she could sneak my cell phone away from me! ;) That girl loves her some cell phones.

Wordless Wednesday: Photo Dump

2011-12-14T08:00:00.002-06:00

This weekend I realized there are a bunch of pictures on my memory card that never made their way on to the blog, so I figured it was time for a photo dump..with a few captions along the way b/c my Wordless Wednesday posts can't be entirely wordless! ;)

{A red-neck playpen! ;) While Derek was busy adorning our house with Christmas lights a few weeks ago, this is where Shelby hung out..surrounded by toys in her baby pool in the garage! Ha! She loved watching Daddy! You may laugh, but this worked like a charm!}
{when my mom was here visiting last month, she baked us a pumpkin pie..Shelby was very interested in watching Grammy baking!}
{A beautiful sunset on the Gulf Coast..we snapped this pic when we went to the Beau Rivage a couple of weeks ago to take pictures of Shelby w/ their Christmas decorations}

{Shelby's first time on a "big" slide when we were in GA last month--that is a happy face, by the way!}

{Derek loves trains, and last Christmas Derek's dad & stet-mom gave us one for Christmas. This was Shelby's first look at the train after Derek got it set up.}

The Christmas tree in the pictures above is our "card tree," but it's bare in the pictures above b/c we hadn't yet received any Christmas cards at this point.

Weekend Recap

2011-12-12T15:00:00.001-06:00

Derek has had a great schedule at work this month, and we got to enjoy a three-day weekend this weekend..so our weekend started on Thursday night! :) We celebrated the start of the weekend with a trip to Wal-Mart (and we quickly remembered why we are Target shoppers) and a family date to Fox's (a yummy pizza place) & Bop's for ice cream! When we got back home and went to get Shelby out of her carseat, this is what we found...

Apparently, the hood of her vest was impeding the view of her beloved movie. And being the problem-solver that she is, Shelby was holding her hood up so she could have a better view. Ha! We felt so bad for her b/c we were sure her arm was so tired from holding the hood up for the whole drive home! But it was just so funny.

On Friday morning, Derek went hunting (his first time hunting since we moved here), and Shelby & I enjoyed a quiet morning at home. That evening, Derek & I got to have a night out to attend the Internal Medicine department's Christmas party. We are so thankful that Shelby is very easy to leave with a babysitter..she's usually having so much fun that she doesn't even notice when we walk out the door! And we are also thankful to call so many of Derek's co-workers our friends--we really enjoyed spending time with them on Friday night!

On Saturday, we had the privilege of attending a first birthday party for one of Miss Shelby's BFFs. The party was just so stinking cute! They did a red wagon theme, which I think is just perfect for a little boy! Everything was so cute, and the food was delish! Here are some {out of order} pics from the party...

Derek works with Ben (the birthday boy's daddy) at the hospital, and Shelby & I became friends with Angela (the birthday boy's mommy) & Adam (the birthday boy) through our playgroup. Angela is actually from the same town in GA as Derek & me and went to a neighboring high school, and Ben & Angela are both UGA grads. And on top of that, they are just ridiculously sweet and funny people..we are so thankful for our friendship with them! So we were thrilled to be able to celebrate their sweet boy's first year of life with them. Happy Birthday, sweet Adam!

We made a quick trip to the commissary and BX on Saturday evening after the party, but it didn't last too long. Shelby is currently in a phase where she does not like to be in the cart for grocery shopping/errands. She doesn't throw a fit or cry...she's just very whiny the entire time. So it's hard to get anything done. But I will say, it's much easier to handle when Daddy accompanies us girls. ;)

Sunday was such a good day. The three of us stayed home all day, and it was just so nice. We only left the house to take a mid-day walk together. Despite our laziness,we did manage to accomplish getting our Christmas cards addressed, stuffed, and ready to be mailed! And Shelby & I got them dropped off at the post office this morning...feels so good to have that done! :) I always love sending & receiving Christmas cards...it's one of my favorite things this time of year! Hope everyone is having a great start to their week! :)

Shelby's First Homemade Ornament & Playgroup Fun

2011-12-09T15:29:00.001-06:00

Every Wednesday is playgroup day for Miss Shelby & me. Our little playgroup is made of the wives & babies of the residents & staff doctors of the Internal Medicine department at Keesler. It's such a wonderful mid-week treat for Shelby & me. Shelby gets some great social interaction & a change of venue/toys, and I get some much-needed adult interaction and time with spent with sweet friends. This week, we got together at someone's house to make dough ornaments with the kiddos' handprints. These pictures aren't super-exciting or high quality {I stole them off FB}, but I want to be able to look at these pictures and remember how Shelby and I spent our days together. Such fun memories! We are so thankful for our playgroup and dear friends.

And here is Miss Shelby's first homemade ornament to adorn our Christmas tree! I can't wait to add some ribbon to it and hang it on our tree! I know we will cherish this little ornament for years to come!

Shelby & Santa

2011-12-07T07:00:00.000-06:00

We took Shelby to see Santa this past weekend at our local mall. She did wonderfully! She was a little nervous sitting with a complete stranger, so we couldn't get a smile out of her. But I thought this picture was so sweet of her looking up at Santa Claus!
Click HERE to see Shelby's first meeting with Santa last year. What a difference a year makes--last year, she was so itty bitty and now we have such a big girl on our hands! I wonder what our visit with Santa will be like next year. There was a two year-old in line to see Santa right behind Shelby, and she looked like she was about to pop at any given second. We were thrilled that there was no freaking out or tears from Shelby this year, but we'll see what next year brings!

And on a totally unrelated note {but something I might like to remember later}, I think this is only the fourth time in Shelby's 14.5 months of life that she has actually worn shoes..ha! ;)

13 Month Pictures

2011-12-05T20:20:00.000-06:00

Remember this yellow dress? Well, here's the rest of the pictures that we captured of Shelby in it. We went to Portrait Innovations for this photo shoot....

It's Friday!

2011-12-02T22:00:00.001-06:00

It's Friday, so here's five things I'm currently loving...

5. This vest from Old Navy for Shelby.
A vest is just perfect for Shelby for two reasons. First of all, it just doesn't get all that cold here on the Gulf Coast. And secondly, getting a coat on and off a squirmy little girl is no easy feat. But a vest? Soo much easier to work with. And, it's super-cute to boot! {Sorry these two pics aren't the best quality--they are from phone.}

4. Book Exchange!
Shelby & I are participating in a book exchange with some friends. I've noticed a lot of people in the blogosphere are getting in on the fun, too! It's kind of like chain mail from back in the day, but Derek thinks it's more like an educational pyramid scheme..ha! It's kind of hard to explain, but we mail a book to just one person...and then Shelby will get lots of books in return. It's a fun & easy way to spread the love of reading to other kiddos. And I l-o-v-e children's books, so this has been super fun for both of us!

3. Mochacino by Essie
2. Excel by Five
Is your community an Excel by Five community? From what I understand, Excel by Five is basically a government funded initiative that targets preschool age children (children from birth to five years of age) to give them a head-start so to be speak so that they won't already be behind before they even start school. But let me just tell you, it is an amazing resource for us! The Biloxi Excel by Five is located just a couple of minutes off base, and it is attached to an elementary school. They have basically converted about six classrooms into Excel by Five rooms. There is a birth-two year old & three-five year old room filled with developmentally appropriate toys/activities, a block room, an art room, etc. They also have a "lending library" where you can check out learning resources for your child, instruments/toys for your child, games, books, big books, and the list goes on! It is just such an awesome place for Shelby, and it's free! I love it! We usually go there once a week for a couple of hours...we both have a lot of fun when we go! Here are a few pics I snapped of Shelby with my mom at Excel by Five when she was here visiting last month...

And here's another pic of Shelby that my friend Jenny snapped while we were at Excel by Five one day..I love her sweet smile and head tilt combo in this one! :)

1. Having Derek back home!
Derek got home on Wednesday night from his month in Jackson, and we are thrilled to have him home and are settling back into life just the three of us. I have to admit that thanks to my mom, this month really flew by for us! Our time with her and then our mini-trip up to Jackson really broke up the month. But regardless, we are so thankful for the three of us to all be at home again.

{these two pics were actually taken during the middle of the month when Derek was able to come home for the weekend..it was the first time these two had laid eyes on one another for 19 days!}

Fourteen!

2011-12-01T21:56:00.000-06:00

{fourteen months!}

Here is what Miss Shelby is up to these days...

--you cut your top two teeth!
--you are officially only taking one afternoon nap now. It took you about a week to get used to only having one nap, but now you are a pro! You go down for your nap sometime between 12:30-1:30 (depending on how early you wake up in the morning) and usually nap for 3 hours...sometimes 4! You are a great napper!
--You have started to become a sleepyhead in the morning, which Mommy enjoys b/c I can get some chores done/check email/shower before you wake up most days. You are usually waking up around 8:30-9.
--You go to bed around 8pm.
--This month you learned what we affectionately call "the dropsies" in our house. You discovered it is fun to drop (sometimes throw) food from your highchair tray. We can't figure out why you do it..you have no discrimination when it comes to the dropsies. You drop food you like and food you don't like. It is beyond frustrating for your mama. I have resorted to spoon/hand-feeding you pretty much everything you eat, or else it all ends up on the floor. Sometimes you even drop your Wubbanub or your paci out of your crib when you wake up...and you are not happy when you realize Mommy isn't there to give them back to you. When this happens, I usually find you standing up in your crib looking longingly to your Wubby and paci on the floor..ha!
--cruising along the furniture!
--you will walk if we hold both of your hands. You can walk if we only hold one hand, but it usually makes you nervous so you will only go a couple of steps before plopping back down.
--you really found your speed with crawling this month! It's so funny to watch you...you will craw all over the carpet, but as soon as you get to the tile you switch back over to scooting b/c you like to scoot on smooth, slick surfaces. It's too cute!
--meal time continues to be one of your least favorite times (mine too!!) of the day. You are predominantly eating baby food (you will eat almost any flavor of stage 2 or 3..but you don't like any stage 3 with chunks!). The only table food you consistently eat is bananas, bread, crackers, and anything from the Gerber snack line--yogurt melts, apple wheels, etc.
--taking 3 bottles of whole milk a day. You drink water throughout the day from your sippy cup. We are contemplating switching you over to sippy cups for your milk soon...we'll see!
--we give you Benefiber in your bottles of milk. A friend suggested this as a remedy for your constipation, and it has been a life-saver for us!
--went down your first slide this month and LOVED it!

--you are learning lots of "tricks" and can do several of them on demand. I am most impressed b/c you understand what all of these questions/commands mean, and you can do them without me prompting you. I'm sure this list really isn't all that impressive to most people, but hey I'm a proud mama! It simply amazes me what babies can learn and understand so early in life.

**Where's Mommy's nose?**
**Where's your tongue?**
**Where's Mommy's head?**
**clap**
**wave**
**blow kisses*

There might be a few more tricks, but this is all I can recall for now.
--you still love to be read to and hear us sing to you.
--one of your favorite "games" to play this month was for you to try to put your paci or Wubbanub in my mouth when I come to get you after you wake up in the morning or after naps. You think it is so silly, and then of course you want it back immediately! Ha!

I love this next picture b/c this is something you do all the time these days..especially in your high chair! You like to tilt your head to the side, and it's so funny b/c it's like you know how cute you are when you do it!

And this last picture makes it pretty apparent to me why you are still in the 100th percentile for height! Your legs are so long!

{Happy Fourteen Months, Shelby-girl! We love you!}

Wordless Wednesday: Shelby's Favorite Spot in the Kitchen

2011-11-30T15:07:00.002-06:00

It's a good thing she's cute ;)

A Cracker Barrel Thanksgiving

2011-11-28T21:36:00.005-06:00

Shelby finally decided to wake up at 9:45 on Turkey Day (she is such a sleepyhead these days, but I'm not complaining!!!), and we got on the road around 11am for Jackson. I had the plan worked out perfectly in my mind..the drive would take us 3 hours, which would get us there just in time for me to get Shelby her lunch and get her down for a nap at a decent time. Well, I totally didn't think about how hard it would be to get an adult, a nearly 30 pound baby, a pack n play, bumbo seat & tray, baby's lunch, mama's lunch, sound machine, blankets, diaper bag {there's a few more things, but I'm pretty sure you get the idea at this point..it was a LOT of stuff! Ha!} into the hotel room on the 3rd floor by.my.self. And I had to do it quickly b/c Shelby was hungry and tired. From the time we rolled into the parking lot of the hotel to when I got Shelby down in her pack n play was probably about an hour. But those 60 minutes...oh those were probably the most stressful, chaotic, and ugly 60 minutes of my life. It wasn't pretty, but I survived. And I learned my lesson...us girls will not be going to a hotel on our own anytime in the near future. Luggage carts were not meant to be loaded or steered with a non-walking 14 month old in tow. Period.

Okay, onto the enjoyable part of our day! Derek got off work and back to the hotel around 6:30 that evening, so we quickly woke Shelby up from her nap (I told you she is quite the sleeyhead!) and headed over to Cracker Barrel. This was hands-down the best behaved/most fun Shelby has ever been/had at a restaurant..it's like she knew it was a special holiday! As you can see by the pictures below, she loved sliding her menu {notice the blur in the pictures?!} back and forth across the table..ha! And we had a big milestone on this evening...tonight when we gave Shelby the crayons, she scribbled for the first time! We were so proud! {But don't worry..after about 5 minutes of scribbling, the crayons went straight into the mouth! Note to self: add non-toxic crayons to the long list of things I am thankful for!}

{I love how determined she looks about her scribbling in the pic below!}

We happened to run into one of the other residents from Keesler who is up in Jackson this month, so he joined us for dinner. Shelby was definitely hamming it up for our company! :)

After dinner, we headed back to the hotel and grabbed some ice cream from the lobby to enjoy as a little Thanksgiving dessert before bed. Shelby wouldn't partake in any of our Thanksgiving dinner, but she was all about the dessert! :)

Daddy had to head to the hospital around 5:45am on Friday morning, but us girls slept in until around 9, packed up, grabbed some Chick-fil-a for this Mama, and hit the road around 10:30. It was definitely a whirlwind trip and road trips are never easy with a little one, but I'm so thankful the three of us could be together for Thanksgiving. And I'm thankful we got to spend some time with one of Derek's co-workers--it was nice getting to know someone that Derek spends his days with, and I'm glad we kept him from being alone on the holiday!

Hope y'all all had a great holiday weekend as well! I feel like I am so behind on the blog, but I have gotten all of Christmas decorations/lights up and most of my shopping done..and that feels so good! Hopefully I'll be back soon with Shelby's very belated 14 month post. Until then, happy Cyber Monday to you! :)

Happy Turkey Day!

2011-11-24T09:00:00.002-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

Shelby & I are packing up the car this morning and heading up to Jackson, MS. I think I've mentioned it before, but Derek has been there on TDY this month working at a civilian hospital. He has to work today but should hopefully get off around 6pm, and us girls will be waiting for him in his hotel room until then! Rumor has it that Cracker Barrel is open until 10pm on Thanksgiving Day...so depending on what time Derek gets off, we will either go to Cracker Barrel as a family to eat our Thanksgiving dinner or Derek will just pick some up on his way home if it's too close to Shelby's bedtime. So it definitely won't be a typical holiday spent with our families, but at least the three of us will be together..and I don't have to cook! ;)

And since I don't have any Thanksgiving-esque pictures to share, I will leave with you these pictures {I figured they're pictures with leaves, which represents fall, which is close enough to Thanksgiving right??} of two people I am oh so thankful for...

{playing in the leaves with Grampy when we were in GA earlier this month}

I hope this holiday finds you surrounded by family, friends, and yummy food! Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone! :)

Wordless Wednesday

2011-11-23T12:00:00.000-06:00

{having fun in the backseat with Auntie Em while we were in GA earlier this month}

Tuesday Tidbits

2011-11-22T07:00:00.002-06:00

Here are a few tidbits to start your Tuesday morning! :)

--We are beyond THRILLED that our beloved Dawgs have clenched the SEC East...SEC Championship, here we come!!!!
--But it's also a sad time for the Bulldog Nation as we lost Larry Munson, THE voice of Georgia football, a couple of days ago.

--And for the last football related tidbit, how exciting is it that the teams ranked 1st, 2nd, and third in the country are all SEC teams! Crazy! And coincidentally, they're all SEC West teams...looks like we're going to have our work cut out for us in the SEC championship game! Ha!
--I finally made my DIY fall wreath that I mentioned HERE. I planned to make it in time to put up right after Halloween...but since we were out of town, it just got made this weekend. :) It will only be up for a couple of days before the Christmas wreath will go up!

To attach the pumpkins to the styrofoam wreath, I used paper clips. I just straightened them out and stuck one end in the pumpkin and poked the other end into the styrofoam. It was so easy! So now I think I can reuse this wreath in the springtime by popping the pumpkins off and maybe replacing them with Easter eggs or birds and switching out the ribbon? I'm excited about possibly getting more use out of it!
--For those of you that may remember, my mom flew out to Biloxi right before Halloween. Then, Shelby, my mom, and I drove back to GA together for about a week and a half. My mom helped us on the drive back to Biloxi last week, and she just flew home yesterday afternoon. She was with us for almost a month! Thanks for putting your life on hold to spend so much time with us, Mom! We miss you already!
--Derek actually got this past weekend off (he's been gone TDY this whole month) and came home. He headed back to Jackson a couple of hours after my mom left yesterday...so it's been especially quiet here today.
--Since my mom was here, Derek & I got to sneak away for a little date night. We went to see the new movie in the Twilight saga...what a sweet hubby I have to always accompany me to my girly movie choices. :) I loved the movie and can't wait for the next one to come out!
--I can't believe Thanksgiving is just two days away & that Christmas is a month from Friday..ahhhh!

I Heart JT!

2011-11-19T09:00:00.002-06:00

If you knew me in high school or college, then you would know that I loved me some *NSync back in the day. Okay, who am I kidding? I still love them, and I still have all of their CD's in my car to prove it. I'm not ashamed! And if you've been reading the blog for long, you'd know that I previously had my walls adorned with pictures and posters of JT & *NSync {which you can see HERE}. In high school, I waited in line at midnight for the release of the new *NSync CD along my sister and two of my best friends.
Then in college, my friends and I did the same thing when JT released his debut solo album.
I always loved his music and of course thought he was oh so cute...but I think I love JT now even more than I did back then...and HERE is the reason why.

And on a totally separate note, I love that my best friends from high school are still my best friends today despite the miles between us. So thankful for those girls!

One Dress & Three Generations

2011-11-17T22:40:00.004-06:00

When my mom was around 12 months old, she had her picture made in a little yellow dress. My mom saved that dress for 30 years and had pictures of my sister and me both wearing it at around the same age. Well, here we are 27 years later...and I just had my daughter's picture taken in the very same dress. What a special keepsake these photographs are of three generations of girlies in our family :)

my mom

my sister Emily

Shelby

I love looking at these pictures and seeing the similarities and differences between the four of us at roughly the same age. I definitely won the award for the most hair, and Emily wins for most teeth. And if Shelby were to get an award, it would be for the chubbiest arms. OMG. I thought it was an ordeal it to get this dress on for the picture, and then when it came to take it off...I thought we were going to have to literally cut it off of her. It was beyond ridiculous how tight it was on her poor little arms....lots of tears were shed trying to get it off! This girl definitely earned her spot in the 100th percentile for height & weight..ha! {Okay, truth be told she actually dropped down to the 96th or 98th for weight at her 12 month appt.} But I am happy to say, the dress is still in one piece and ready Shelby's future sister or cousin to wear one day :) I just hope it fits them better than it did Shelby! ;)

Business in the front....

2011-11-13T09:00:00.001-06:00

. . . and a party in the back!

Shelby had some crazy post-bath hair last night, and I just had to get a picture of it! Ha! Her hair is really getting a lot longer & thicker..but only in the back! When her hair is wet, it looks like she has a rat tail or a mullet...but I hate to cut it since we want to grow. But I will say that it makes for some interesting looks sometimes! :)

Happy Veterans Day!

2011-11-11T21:23:00.008-06:00

This nation will remain the land of the free, only so long as it is the home of the brave.

{Elmer Davis}
I have the utmost respect for all those brave men & women in uniform who have served or are currently serving our nation. You are what makes our country so great. I am especially proud to be the daughter of an Army veteran and an Air Force wife!

Here is my sweet hubby & me on the day he commissioned into the Air Force. {It was also our graduation day.} I had no clue what our future in the Air Force would look like, but I was so excited to begin this journey together!

And just for fun, here are two more old school pictures of us from ROTC Dining Out events...

Derek and I dated in college when he was in ROTC, and it was such a fun experience for the both of us! Little did I know that the Air Force would become our life, and I couldn't be happier about it. We are proud to call many of our nation's heroes our friends.
Happy Veterans Day!

Wordless Wednesday: A Trip to the New Orleans Aquarium!

2011-11-09T10:35:00.001-06:00

And one last picture to share with you....just keepin' it real :)

A New Look!

2011-11-08T07:45:00.001-06:00

In case you haven't noticed, my little blog got a makeover last week! I'm SO excited about the new look! Rachel from Uniquely Yours is the creative mastermind behind it all. She is wonderful--so easy to work with & super-quick with the turnaround! If your blog is in need of a makeover, I would highly recommend her!

And speaking of websites you should check out, go take a look at this Etsy shop! A super sweet bloggy friend of mine just opened up her own Etsy shop selling all sorts of custom & personalized Christmas decor items. She is amazingly talented & crafty, and all of her stuff is amazing! And to top it all off, she is hosting a giveaway on her blog this week..fun, fun!

Happy Tuesday to you! :)

13!

2011-11-06T07:00:00.000-06:00

It's hard to believe Shelby's first birthday has come and gone, and we have a 13.5 month old on our hands! We are well over-due for a 13 month post for Miss Shelby. {I am planning to continue the monthly posts through her second birthday.}
Here is what Miss Shelby is up to these days....

--a couple of days after your first birthday, you started doing the official baby crawl! No more army crawl for you!
--you can now pull up to standing!
--you can also go from standing to sitting very well! You are so cautious about it, which just tickles me to death. I have always been the nervous/cautious type, and apparently the apple doesn't fall far from the tree! I always see other babies falling down after they've been standing up for a while..not you! I could probably count on one hand the number of times you've fall b/c you are just so darn careful that it never happens!
--you are now drinking whole milk, and you love it!
--we stopped giving you Prevacid after your 12 month appointment with the pediatrician, and you seem to be doing great without it!
--at about 12.5 months, you started to drop your afternoon nap. Your morning nap was still long (2.5-3 hrs), but you wouldn't always fall asleep in the afternoons. I tried cutting your morning nap shorter to "preserve" the afternoon nap, but that didn't work! So we would just let you take your long morning nap, and then you would have your afternoon "rest time" in your crib. Some days you would fall asleep, but most days you just sit up there babbling and playing for about an hour.
--still booty-scooting all over the place! It is your favorite thing to do!
--you are still a very picky eater, just like your mama was! We still feed you the purred baby food at every meal b/c that is the only way we can get fruits {other than bananas, of course!} & veggies in you.
--you had a rough bout of constipation this month. We are still struggling with it a bit, but you are thankfully doing MUCH better!

We love you so much, Shelby-girl!

Top Five Friday: Halloween Memories!

2011-11-04T15:06:00.030-05:00

It's Friday and I haven't done a Top Five Friday post in for-ev-er and I have an abudance of Halloween-related pictures/things to catch you up on....thus, the Halloween edition of Top Five Friday! :) So in no particular order, here are five precious memories that I want to remember about spending Halloween with a 13 month old....

5. Seward Farms.
We went to a farm in Southern Alabama one Saturday with Shelby, and her favorite part was standing up in the hayride and looking out over the rail.

4. Playgroup.
We had a Halloween themed playgroup the week of Halloween with our friends where all the kiddos dressed up in their costumes and had a little treat exchange. We thought it would be fun to get a picture of all the kiddos in their Halloween cuteness. It was no easy feat to get a picture of them all sitting still in the same place at the same time, but they sure are cute! :)

3. Pumpkin Patch.
And by pumpkin patch, I mean a bunch of pumpkins sitting in a church parking lot. :)
2. Trick or Treating!

We only took Shelby to about 4 or 5 of our neighbors' house to get a couple of pictures and of course to get a little extra candy to add to our stash to give out {we have a ton of kiddos in our neighborhood, and I felt like I bought way too much candy this year & last year but we ran out of candy both times!}. But she seemed to have more fun at home watching the other kids come up to our door!

1. Eating yummy things she shouldn't be eating! :)
We caught Shelby red-handed on Halloween night with candy corn in her mouth!
My mom baked Derek a pumpkin pie on Halloween for him to take with him to Jackson. {He will be gone TDY for the month of November.} I'm not a huge pumpkin pie fan, but my mom & Derek both decided to have a piece before Derek headed out...and it turns out Miss Shelby takes after her Daddy in her love of pumpkin pie! :)

Wordless Wednesday: Fun on the Swing!

2011-11-02T07:00:00.001-05:00

Happy Halloween from our Little Pumpkin!

2011-10-29T15:09:00.000-05:00

Happy Halloween!

It will be a little quiet here on the blog for the next couple of days b/c my mom just got into town this morning..yay! And we have a busy, fun-filled weekend ahead of us! We picked her up at the airport this morning and hit the ground running. We headed straight to one of Shelby's friend's first birthday party...we are now cheering on the Dawgs before heading to the ZBB concert tonight :) Tomorrow will bring a trip to the NOLA aquarium, and then lots of trick-or-treating fun on Monday! Fun, fun! So I wanted to go ahead and wish you a very happy Halloween weekend from our little pumpkin! :)

Sweet Spider Halloween Card

Make a statement with Shutterfly Halloween photo cards.

View the entire collection of cards.

Family Photos

2011-10-28T07:00:00.002-05:00

As I mentioned before, we had some family photos taken last week by Many Moons Photography. The photographer actually lives here on base, so we were able to get our pictures taken along the back bay in our neighborhood. I love that these photos were taken in a place that we spend so much time as a family...the pictures will always be a special reminder of our time here on the Gulf Coast.

I was so worried these pictures were not going to turn out good at.all. Lately, Shelby hasn't been napping in the afternoon..she just has a quiet "rest time" for about an hour in her crib. But don't you know this was the one day she actually fell asleep, and I had to go in and wake her up to get to the photo shoot on time. This was also the same day that cooler weather decided to visit Biloxi (don't worry though, our highs are back in the 80's again!), so Shelby got a little chilly outside and her nose started to run. And then the bugs started bothering her. Oh, it was a mess! She was just so grumpy the whole time! But the photographer was amazing {and oh so patient!} and really got some good pictures that I know we will treasure for years to come! Without further ado, here are a plethora of pictures for you :)

Wordless Wednesday: DIY Halloween Wreath

2011-10-26T07:35:00.001-05:00

{the inspiration via this blog}

{my wreath}

Why, hello there!

2011-10-24T11:20:00.006-05:00

Sorry for the silence on the ole blog lately. There's really no excuse or reason as to why I haven't blogged other than the fact that I simply haven't made time for it. :) But let's catch up, shall we?

We are still battling the constipation (and the picky eater syndrome), but I think the hardest part (pun intended) is behind us. It's times like these that I am so thankful for this blog...I wrote that last past with the purpose of venting and getting all of those frustrated feelings off of my chest, and then in return I received so many helpful tips and people reminding me that I'm not the first mama to go down this path. It was so reassuring!

I have lots of stuff to blog about...our trip to a local farm for some fall fun, a DIY halloween wreath I attempted, Shelby's 13 month post, but for now I will leave you with a sneak peek at some family pictures we had made recently and a promise that I'll be back again soon! :)

{picture taken by Many Moons Photography...if you are local, I highly recommend them!}

Reality Blogging

2011-10-14T08:35:00.001-05:00

I just read this post by K.Law yesterday, and it inspired me to share some real life with you on this little blog of mine. Now I will warn you that reality TV is oh so fun...but reality blogging in the trials and tribulations of raising a one year old? I'm gonna go out on a limb here and says it's probably not quite as entertaining, but this is our life right now. Don't say I didn't warn you....

Shelby is constipated. And when I say constipated, I mean as constipated as a poor little baby could ever possibly be. And we have tried everything under the sun to remedy it, and we have seen absolutely no results as of yet. Can you say FRUSTRATING? I hate it for her. And in the spirit of keepin' it real, I HATE IT FOR MYSELF. Oh my word, the past week has just been miserable. I have tried changing her diet {and with the pickiest eater ev-er, this was no easy feat. I now dread meal times. Dread. With every fiber of my being. Are you getting the picture??}, tried giving her juice {per recommendation of the pediatrician at her 12 month appt, but she.will.not. drink it}, increased her activity level..you name it, we've tried it. We've even gone so far as to give her a suppository and a laxative...and NOTHING.

I think part of the constipation is a result of her recently switching from formula to whole milk. And another part of the problem is probably that she is still drinking more milk than is recommended for a child of her age, but the girl will not eat solids to save her life...so what's a mama to do? Her diet basically consists of milk and snacks. If I let her, all she would eat is yogurt melts & those Gerber Lil Crunchies {which are basically just cheetos for babies that are fortified with vitatmins} & goldfish. And who am I kidding? Despite my relentless attempts, that is pretty much all she is eats. I literally sat at the kitchen table yesterday morning while the two of us ate breakfast in tears. Tears. I know you're probably thinking I am crazy and wondering why I was crying...what's the big deal? Well, let me tell you what the big deal is. Since I have the privilege of staying home with Shelby, she is my one and only concern..my only responsibility right now. And with nothing else to worry about, it leaves me with all the time in the world to obsess over this. And it is literally driving me bananas {which is funny b/c Shelby loves bananas, and I haven't been letting her eat them with the diet change..sadness}.

As frustrated as I am right now, I know I am not alone. I know I am not the first mama to fret over her baby's diet and her lack of poopy diapers. And there is so much comfort in that. I have made some new friends on base recently that have really enriched my life. Two of these sweet people who have befriended us are also UGA alums and even from our hometown...what a small world! As soon as I mentioned Shelby's constipation to this friend who also happens to be a first-time mama, she immediately told me of her struggles of constipation with her son and shared some of their stash of prunes with us. :) Shelby and I have also joined a really great playgroup recently, and it has been so good for both of us. Shelby is getting some great interaction with other kiddos her age, and I am getting the adult conversation that I crave during the days and the camaraderie of going through this journey of motherhood together.

And in conclusion, I must ask you all to pray for some poop. Seriously.

A Fun Family Morning

2011-10-12T12:16:00.000-05:00

Derek has been working the night shift at the hospital lately, so we don't see a lot of him these days. Usually our only good chunk of family time where we're all in the house together & awake is 5:30-7:30pm, which also happens to be the time when we are scrambling to get dinner on the table, Shelby is starting to get a little fussy (afternoon naps have been a struggle at our house for the past couple of days), and Shelby needs her bath/bedtime routine right around the same time that Derek is getting ready to head out for work....so needless to say, it's not really quality family time! Ha! But Derek had a night off the other day, which meant Daddy was well-rested and we were able to spend a wonderful morning together as a family!
So we loaded up the stroller in the car and headed to the beach. We walked along the beach a bit and took a stroll down the Lighthouse Pier. It was such a nice Fall morning with a hint of chill in the air, which is a rare treat on the Gulf Coast! Since it was cool enough, we just left Shelby in her jammies for the morning to keep her tootsies warm. :)

{view of the lighthouse & visitors center from the pier}

Being Touristy

2011-10-10T12:07:00.000-05:00

When we lived in Northern VA, we would always make a trip into DC whenever we had visitors...there was so much touristy stuff to do & see! We lived there for three years (Derek for four), and there's still stuff we didn't get to see. Biloxi is definitely a change of pace from DC, and there's not nearly as much touristy stuff to do here...but we all know this is the main attraction when people come to visit. :)

{Shelby getting into the Halloween spirit with her new shirt from BooBoo & Pop-Pop!}

But even though Biloxi is far from DC, we still love our new little town! When my parents & sister came into town for Shelby's birthday, we took them to the lighthouse & new Biloxi Visitors Center one morning.

{via}

The original visitors center was destroyed by Katrina. The lighthouse did endure some damage, but it has survived Camille & Katrina and countless other Gulf Coast storms. The new Visitors Center just opened a couple of months ago and sits right behind the lighthouse.

{looking up the staircase of the lighthouse}

{Grammy & Shelby watching from as the rest of us went up the lighthouse}

{all six of us in front of the lighthouse}

{the rest of the pictures below are taken from the balcony of the Visitors Center that overlooks the lighthouse}

{Shelby found buttons on Grampy's shirt..she loves buttons!}

{tongue sticking out...you can tell she's thrilled to be taking pictures!}

{classic picture...if you know my Dad, this picture probably doesn't surprise you in the slightest!}

We had a great day! Hopefully we'll have more visitors soon who we can show around Biloxi...hint, hint! ;) We heart visitors! And speaking of visitors, my mom is coming at the end of the month and I am SO excited! :)

A Photo Dump....

2011-10-08T08:00:00.000-05:00

Here are a few more random pictures from Shelby's birthday weekend that haven't made it to the blog yet, but I thought they were definitely worth sharing/remembering...

{sweet cousins}

And I'm pretty sure that is the last of Shelby's birthday posts..thank you for indulging me! ;)

Another milestone!

2011-10-06T07:00:00.000-05:00

We have an official crawler! Shortly after Shelby's first birthday, she suddenly started crawling! She has been doing her "Air Force crawl" for a little while now, but recently she started to stay up on all fours a little longer before dropping down to her belly when she was ready to start moving. But all of a sudden, she started to crawl this way right after her birthday! Like I've said before...this girl does everything in her own time! Ha! Some kids start walking around their first birthday, and ours has just started crawling! ;) But we are so proud of her!

And just for good measure, here's another video for you of Shelby's preferred method of mobility. :)

The Birthday Girl on the Move!

2011-10-04T06:00:00.000-05:00

As promised, here is a video of Shelby doing her version of the "booty scoot." This isn't the best video, but it's the best one I've got right now and I figured it goes with the birthday theme of my recent posts. :) Enjoy!

Shelby's First Birthday Party!

2011-10-02T12:55:00.000-05:00

Shelby's birthday fell on a Saturday this year, so we were able to have her very first birthday party on the day of her actual birthday. We were so thankful that our immediate family {my parents & sister as well as Derek's mom, step-dad, sister, brother-in-law, and our sweet niece} were all able to make the trip to Biloxi from GA/AL to celebrate with us! We were also blessed to share this special day with a few of our neighbors and friends here at Keesler.

Here is our little family of 3 right before the party got underway...
You can tell Shelby wasn't too thrilled about wearing her birthday hat, so it didn't stay on for very long! Ha!
Shelby did not know what to think when I put the cupcake in front of her and we all sang "Happy Birthday" to her. I think she takes after her mama...doesn't like all of the attention on her! She's usually the loudest little girl when we're at home, but whenever we're at playgroup with friends or in a large group setting she always gets quiet...it's so neat to see her little personality starting to come out more & more.
This next picture is so Shelby. Whenever she sees something new, she always inspects it with her one little pointer finger.
After several minutes & a little help from Daddy, Shelby finally realized that birthday cupcakes are pretty fun after all! :)
Next up...opening presents!
Shelby wasn't too interested in opening the gifts, so I had to do most of the work..haha! But Shelby {and cousin Elly, too!} did have fun playing with the tissue paper and bags!
After the gift wrap got old, we finally moved on to the new toys :)
Grampy is reading Shelby one of her new board books :)

These next two pictures were taken the morning after Shelby's birthday party...can you tell these sweet cousins were enjoying playing with the new toys?!

12 months

2011-09-30T12:00:00.000-05:00

Shelby, you are 12 months old! A whole entire year old!! And what a wonderful year it has been!

And here is your last collage with all of your monthly pictures from your first year of life!

Here's what Miss Shelby is up to these days....

--you had your first little cold this month. For the first eleven months of your life, you were as healthy as a horse..so this was our first time handling a baby who was feeling under the weather. I don't know if it was harder on you or Mommy! But we both survived :)
--you went to your first storytime at the library this month, and we have started going every week! Your favorite part is the songs at the beginning of storytime.
--clapping all the time, and it is THE cutest thing!
--you can now pull up to your knees, but you are content to just stay on your knees. You haven't yet pulled all the way up to standing & part of me thinks it's b/c you're so tall! Once you get to your knees, you can reach whatever it is you want!
--we started your second Kindermusik class this month, and you are loving it even more than your first class {if that's possible}!
--I can't believe I haven't mentioned this before on the ole blog, but your preferred method of mobility is the "booty scoot." Shelby started doing it when she was in her baby pool this summer since the floor of the pool was slick it was easy for her to move around that way. She tried to do it on the carpet for the longest time by rocking herself forward and backward to gain momentum {for any of you Braves fans, she looked exactly like Leo Mazzone in the dug out}, and then one day she just started moving. She still does her army crawl, but this is hands down her primary method of mobility. I never knew that this was that unusual for a baby to do, but whenever we are at storytime, Kindermusik, or somewhere out and about where Shelby can get her booty scoot on...people just flock to her. They think it is so cute {which we do, too!}. I will try to post a video of it soon!
--babbling up a storm, but no real words yet. You have learned how to mimick our sounds very well though! If we say "ba-ba-ba" or "da-da-da," you can say it right back to us!
--You can still fit into a few of your 12 month clothes, but 18 month fits you much better. You wear mostly 18 & 24 month PJ's. You wear a size 4 diaper still during the day and a size 5 overnight diaper for bedtime.
--Still taking prevacid for your acid reflux, but hopefully your pediatrician will tell us we can stop taking that once we finally get in for your 12 month check-up next week.
--You still only have your two bottom teeth, but you are great at "gumming" your table food! :)
--you still L.O.V.E. your sleep! You usually sleep 12 hours every night and take two GOOD naps each day.

Shelby showing off her ability to pull up to her knees and trying to escape from her glider! :)

Linky Love!

2011-09-28T15:42:00.000-05:00

I still haven't finished Shelby's 12 month post or finished the last party post yet {her birthday was only a week and a half ago, so I guess it's not that bad, right?!}, so in the meantime I thought I'd share a few fun links with you. :)

--click here {HERE} for a personalized Halloween treat bag
This is what Shelby will be carrying on Halloween this year. :) I was originally going to order one from Pottery Barn Kids for her, but I didn't love any of them enough to spend the money. Plus, I never have good look with their monogramming. So I kept looking. Then I found Personalization Mall's treat bags, which I thought were super cute...and very reasonably priced, especially considering the price included monogramming. And the best part is they're on sale now! :)

--click {HERE} a free & fun fall printable {pictured below on the right-hand side of the shelf}
I think I originally came across this when I saw it mentioned on Blue Eyed Bride, but I just love it!
--click {HERE} for a post that really spoke to me on frienships
I will try not to go into whole lot of detail about this because I could totally dedicate an entire post to this topic}. I've mentioned {HERE} before that making new friends can be hard for me. I think it's one of those things that definitely gets harder as you get older, and it's also hard if you are at stay-at-home-mama. When you're working, you're around people all the time. But when you stay home, it's easy to start to feel isolated and alone..even though you're really not. And it's especially hard when you have to pick up and move every few years. I'm so thankful that we still have a great deal of time left here in Biloxi b/c I really feel like I am starting to find my niche here, and it's such a good feeling. Perhaps I'll share more on this later once I get caught up on the ole blog..

--click {HERE} for a tutorial on a super cute DIY fall wreath
I found the tutorial from Kate over at Barefoot Daydreams, and I also saw this wreath on Bless Our Nest recently. So cute! I plan to attempt this soon, but I'm sure mine won't turn out nearly as cute as these ladies' did!

Okay, I think that's enough random links & thoughts for one day...hopefully I'll be back later this week with Shelby's 12 month post and/or the rest of the birthday pictures! We'll see! ;)

Shelby's Sweet Shoppe: The Details!

2011-09-25T20:28:00.001-05:00

Here are some of the little details from Shelby's first birthday party....
It maybe have been Shelby's birthday, but it was also gameday people! So naturally, we had to incorporate UGA into some of the party decor! ;)
We already had candy canes from our Christmas decorations, and then I converted the bubble wands (from Target's One Spot) into lollipops by covering them in plastic wrap (is that what you call that stuff??) and tying them with ribbon. And thank you Mom for the cute birthday garden flag! :)
You can see the candy wreath that I made in the picture below. These were very simple to make. Derek did most of the work by using a box cutter to cut circles out of cardboard boxes for me. Then I covered the circles with tissue paper, tied the ends with ribbon, and glued the little sign on the front, and voila!
I contemplated ordering these cake pops as favors for the party b/c they matched the theme of the party so perfectly, but then I came back to reality and we did bubbles (they are the ice cream cones, so it still went with the "sweet shoppe" theme) and little bags that people could fill up with candy to take home.

I made two banners for the party following this tutorial and purchased one on clearance from Tar-Jay for $3.50 I think.
I put the Shutterfly book I made of Shelby's first year out on the table at the party for guests to sign and write a little message to Shelby. I thought it would make a nice keepsake.
And of course we had to hang up Shelby's monthly pictures..
And here's the food...
I made poor Derek carve another watermelon fruit basket for me...I'm sure you can tell he was real pleased with my idea ;)
I ordered the cupcake toppers from this shop on Etsy.
Okay, so I know this was probably not the most exciting post ever to read..but I want to have a record of all the little details from Miss Shelby's very first birthday party! Next up in the never-ending birthday posts is party/guest pictures! :)

The Invitation

2011-09-23T11:00:00.000-05:00

I still haven't gone through the hundreds of pictures we took during Shelby's birthday weekend, so I will take the easy way out and start the birthday recap by sharing the invitation first...

{the address is painted over}
I had the invitation designed by this shop on Etsy, and then I printed the invites through MPix.

And here is a shot of the custom stamps I ordered from Zazzle to adorn the envelopes.

I know I'm a bit biased, but I just love how the invitation turned out! Stay tuned for more....yep, you guessed it! Birthday posts! :)

Whew!

2011-09-21T07:00:00.003-05:00

Whew..what a whirlwind the past couple of weeks have been! Let's recap, shall we? It all started when we took a spur of the moment trip home to go to the Georgia/South Carolina game. We headed to GA on Thursday and then got back to Biloxi late on Sunday night. I barely had time to unpack our bags & catch up on laundry before my family arrived on Wednesday to see the birthday girl. Then it was a mad dash to get all of the birthday decorations & food prepared (SO thankful I had my family in town to help with it all!), Derek's fam arrived on Friday, we partied on Saturday, and then said our goodbyes to everyone on Sunday. We were exhausted to say the least. Derek was fortunate enough to have Monday morning off, so what did I decide to have us do on the Monday morning after our whirlwind of events? Take a trip to the immunizations clinic at the hospital, of course. What was I thinking?!?! I know what I was thinking. I wanted to take advantage of Derek having the morning off to be able to accompany us for the shots. (Shelby was getting her 12 month shots, and all 3 of us were getting the flu shot.) But seriously, what was I thinking?! After a crazy couple of weeks, we needed a couple of low-key days to recuperate, but instead we have been dealing with a very fussy little girl. Poor baby was uncomfortable after the shots on Monday, but it was bearable with Tylenol. But then she woke up on Tuesday with congestion, a runny nose, and lots of sneezing on Tuesday (I think it's a result of the flu shot). Shelby is usually not the crying-type. Don't get me wrong, she can voice her displeasure..she just prefers to whine until she gets her way. Ha! So when she cries, I always know something is really wrong. Well, since her shots the tears have been free-flowing. It just breaks my heart.

I had fully intended on filling y'all in on the big birthday bash by now, but the past 48 hours since we had our shots have just been rough. {Shelby is still sound asleep upstairs, and I'm holding out hope that she will be feeling as good as new when she wakes up this morning!} Hopefully I will have some time to share more details and pictures with you soon, but until then here is a picture of the birthday girl to hold you over...

Happy First Birthday, Sweet Shelby!

2011-09-17T15:56:00.001-05:00

Happy Birthday to our sweet baby girl! It's hard to believe that it was a year ago today that we headed into the hospital for what we thought was a routine appointment, and then you surprised us and changed our world forever. We love you so much, Shelby-girl. We love your sweet smile. We love your wide-open mouth when you're excited. We love your loud voice. We love how you do everything at your own pace. We love every single little thing about you baby girl. Sometimes we just can't believe that you are ours. We are so thankful to have been blessed by your sweet little life!

Click here to view this photo book larger

Who does the birthday girl look like?

2011-09-16T19:51:00.001-05:00

We've played the "who does she look like?" game once before, but it's been a while...so it's time for round two! :) First up is the birthday girl...
Now it's time for the comparisons...

So who does our Birthday Girl look like?! And on a separate note, tomorrow is the BIG DAY! We are SO excited to celebrate our one year old!! :)

It's Birthday Week!

2011-09-15T10:10:00.004-05:00

It's birthday week in the Smith House, and we are in full birthday mode around these parts. My parents & sister got into town last night, and they are soaking up every minute with the soon-to-be one year old.

Can you tell this girl is loved?? Yeah, I didn't think so. ;)

And I'm going to go ahead and give you fair warning. You are about to be inundated with mass quantities of birthday pictures & posts. Brace yourself!

One Picture

2011-09-13T12:55:00.004-05:00

Today is the final day of the Ten Day You Challenge! Today's topic is One Picture of Yourself. So I will share with you a picture of me {and Derek, too!} from our weekend.
It is certainly not the most flattering picture of us ever, but I still love it! Such a happy memory :) Now I'm sure you can tell which of my Seven Wants came true this weekend! :)

Two Songs

2011-09-12T20:52:00.005-05:00

Today I will share with you two songs that were a part of our wedding.....

I danced to "I Loved Her First" by Heartland with my Dad.
Here is the second song...

Derek and I danced to "I Could Not Ask For More" by Edwin McCain.

And in other news, one of my Seven Wants from the Ten Day You Challenge actually came true this weekend!! Details to come soon! :)

Three Films

2011-09-09T22:18:00.000-05:00

First of all, who says "films?" And secondly, just like with my list of four books, I won't be sharing my "top favorites" in the movie category either. Rather, I will share with you three movies that I could watch over and over and over again and never grow tired of.

All three of the movies are ones that Derek really enjoys, too..so we quote these movies all.the.time to one another. {Okay, if I'm being totally honest, Father of the Bride isn't really one of Derek's faves, but he really does love Mean Girls just as much as I do! That movie is hil.ar.i.ous!} I will leave with you three lines that we repeat far too often in the Smith household: Classic. Grool. We'll take the "chipper" chicken.

September 8th

2011-09-08T11:00:00.002-05:00

It's hard to believe, but a year ago today was my due date. Now, looking back I should not be at all surprised that Shelby did not come on or before her due date. Our sweet girl likes to do everything in her own time and she really likes her sleep, so now it totally makes sense that she would need a little coaxing to come into the world! Shelby finally came nine days after her due date on the 17th, but even then she didn't come on her accord! It's hard to believe it was a year ago we were anxiously awaiting her arrival, and now we have an almost one-year old on our hands!
Doesn't she look so big in this picture?! This is a random picture I snapped of Shelby with my phone* of her sitting on top of the table at Bop's anxiously awaiting some ice cream! :)

*I'm not a smart phone kinda gal. With that being said, I never had a way to get my cell phone pictures to my computer. But Derek bought me some kind of memory card for my phone that I can then put into my computer, and I'm so excited about it! :) It's the little things in life! So now I'll be able to share all of my phone pics on the blog! I'm sure you're SO excited! ;) The picture from yesterday's post was also from my phone.

Wordless Wednesday: Fun in Hobby Lobby!

2011-09-07T14:00:00.000-05:00

Four Books

2011-09-05T19:00:00.000-05:00

These aren't necessarily my "top" four favorite books of all time or anything, but they are four books I have recently read and would definitely recommend..

4. The last book I finished was The Help. I loved it! And I thought the movie was an excellent portrayal of the book. I actually think I might want to go see it again!
3. The book I am currently reading is In Praise of Stay-At-Home Moms. I just started it, but so far it's good. If you are a stay-at-home mama, I would encourage you to read it!

2. Any book by Nicholas Sparks..I read Safe Haven most recently, which I mentioned here.

1. Little Bee. This isn't the "typical" genre of books I read, but I really enjoyed it!
I just remembered this was actually on my summer reading list last summer, but I just got around to reading it while we were at the beach this summer. Oops! Another book that was on last year's summer reading list but didn't get read until this summer was Laura Bush's autobiography..I really enjoyed that one, too! I always think it's fascinating to see the world from someone else's perspective. Okay, and I just realized that In Praise of Stay-At-Home Moms was on my list from last summer, too. Apparently, I didn't do a whole lot of reading last year! Ha!

And since this former Kindergarten teacher has a soft spot for children's books, here are some of Miss Shelby's current faves...

4. Llama Llama Red Pajama
3. My Many Colored Days

2. How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night?
1. Goodnight Moon
This topic of the challenge was a really fun one for me...I love to read! Does anyone have any good book recommendations for me {or Shelby!} to read?

Five Foods

2011-09-04T11:53:00.002-05:00

Today's topic is five foods, but I'm going to share a few more than five so bare with me. But because I am a rule-follower, I will try to follow the rules by sharing five categories of food. Sound good? Okay, here we go!

5. Fast food places that Biloxi is deprived of, so I have to eat at these places every time I go home..

4. Favorite dessert: ice cream, hands down. I could eat a huge bowl of ice cream every day for the rest of my life and never grow tired of it. I wish I was joking. Actually, I don't wish I was joking. I love ice cream. My favorite ice cream shops are Bop's, Bruster's, Cold Stone, & DQ. My fave brands of ice cream to buy in the store are Edy's and Ben & Jerry's.

3. Breakfast foods. For the vast majority of life, I have loathed breakfast foods. It's always been one of my least fave meals of the day (am I the only one picks favorites between breakfast, lunch, & dinner?!), and I never really enjoyed the tastes or smells (oh my word, the smells!) of eggs, bacon, and all the fixin's cooking. Bleh. But in recent years, I've grown to enjoy them a bit. I still don't particularly enjoy the smell, but it's a big improvement.

2. Pizza. Who doesn't love pizza? Derek & I often reminisce over the good ole college days when every Tuesday you could get a large one-topping pizza from Papa John's in Athens for $5. You better believe we did that practically every.single.week. I'm not even ashamed to say that Derek would usually pick up 3 pizzas...one for him, one for me, and one for my sister {we were roomies for 2 years in Athens when our college years overlapped}. We would each eat a couple of slices of our pizza that night for dinner, and then have leftovers for the rest of the week. We miss Tuesday night pizza!

1. Fave meal to cook at home with my hubby would probably be taco night. {We heart Mexican food!}

Six Places

2011-09-02T21:00:00.000-05:00

It's Day Five of the Ten Day You Challenge, and today's topic is a fun one--six places! I decided to give you a quick glimpse into my life by sharing six places that have helped to shape me and my live over the years. Here we go!

6. St. Louis, Missouri

{via}

This is where I was born. It's where my parents were born (well, close enough ;). It's where both sides of my family still live. I may have only lived there for the first year of my life, but I have a lifetime's worth of memories there. Growing up, we would usually go up for a week or so to visit with everyone, and then we'd usually go up again for Thanksgiving and/or Christmas, too. To me, St. Louis is family. I can't wait to take Shelby there for the first time!

{old school family photo op}

5. Georgia--Suwanee & Athens
Growing up, whenever we were talking about St. Louis, my mom always referred to it as "home." I would always remind her: "That's not our home, Mom! We live in Georgia!" But now I get it. Georgia will always be home for us..just like St. Louis will always be home to her. I was raised in Suwanee, GA. We moved there when I was five, and my parents are still living in my childhood home. I have so many memories there, and now we are making memories there with Shelby.
When I was 18, I packed up and headed 45 minutes east to the town that bleeds red & black. Athens would be my home for the next five years as I completed my undergrad and then went on to receive my master's degree from the one and only University of Georgia. In 2007, we got married in Athens. Athens will always have a special place in our hearts.

{taken the summer after we graduated from UGA in 2006}

4. Hawaii
This is where we honeymooned and spent our first days as husband and wife.

{taken on our helicopter tour of Oahu Island}

3. Centreville, Virginia
The Air Force brought us here. {Well technically speaking, the Air Force took hubby to Bethesda, MD, but we lived in Centreville. For those of you who are familiar with the DC area, I'm sure you're thinking "Wow, that was one heck of a commute!" And yes, my friends it was.} Centreville is where we bought our first home and built our little life together.

It's also where we saw a lot of snow. Remember this and Snowmeggadon? I'm pretty sure we'll never see that much snow again as long as we live!

2. Biloxi, Mississippi
The Mississippi Gulf Coast is where we currently reside as Derek completes his residency in Internal Medicine at Keesler Air Force Base. It is where we Shelby brought into the world, and we will always remember it as her first home.

1. San Antonio, Texas
This is likely where the Air Force will take us next. Derek spent 6 weeks there during med school doing a rotation, and I had the opportunity to visit him while he was out there. From what we saw, we liked the area...we just didn't like how far away it was!!

{above is a blurry picture taken on the River Walk in San Antonio & below is the Alamo..a pretty "underwhelming" tourist attraction if I do say so myself}

Seven Wants

2011-09-01T21:00:00.000-05:00

7. I want to have more patience.

6. I want to have more self-confidence.

5. I want to have a personal shopper who keeps my closet stocked with an up-to-date wardrobe! ;) I don't shop for new clothes all that often any more b/c an 11 month old & dressing rooms aren't exactly a good combination. Not too mention, even when I do have baby-free shopping time, I feel guilty buying lots of new clothes since I usually spend most of time at home.

4. I want to be able to go to a Georgia game this season in the worst way. Hubby & I haven't set foot in Sanford Stadium since I was in grad school in 2006. Derek drove all the way down from DC to go to a game with me. It is now 2011. We haven't been to a UGA game in five years. That is just wrong. We need to fix this ASAP.

3. I want more time in the day...I can never seem to get it all done!

2. I want to live closer to family.

1. I want to be the best "me" I can be.

Okay, I don't know how interesting/enjoyable this Ten Day You Challenge is for y'all to read. But I have really enjoyed reading Stephanie's & the other people's blogs who linked up with her for the challenge..so hopefully I'm not totally boring y'all to death! Ha! I should be back sometime tomorrow with the next topic, which I think is going to be a fun one--six places!

Happy almost Friday to you...and while we're at, I'll also wish you a happy September and a happy start to the college football season! Yay! :)

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-31T11:00:00.000-05:00

I interrupt the Ten Day You Challenge to bring you this edition of Wordless Wednesday. Why? The reason is two-fold. First off, this baby is just so darn cute and you need to see her sweet smile. And secondly, attempting to do ten posts for ten consecutive days was about to wear.me.out.
Hopefully I'll be back tomorrow with the next installment of the Ten Day You Challenge {seven wants}...but no promises! ;) Happy Wednesday!

Eight Fears

2011-08-29T21:24:00.002-05:00

Here we are on Day Three of the Ten Day You Challenge, and today's topic is fears...not such a fun topic, but here we go....
8. Bugs, spiders, and anything else that is creepy and crawly. If I see a bug and it somehow gets away before I have the chance to properly do away with it, it's all I can think about. I do not like them!!

7. Moving out of driving distance from GA. I love that we can just hop in the car and drive home when we want to. There is a high probability that we will be living in San Antonio in a few years, and I am already worried about the fact that every time we want/need to go home we will have to book a flight or spend two days driving. :/

6. Out-living my parents. We had a close call last year, and I just can't imagine life without them.

5. Natural disasters. As soon as we moved to the Gulf Coast, I suddenly had to think about Mother Nature and tropical weather. My first experience with this was when I had my first OBGYN appointment after arriving to Biloxi. They handed me a form explaining what to do in the event of being close to my due date and/or going into labor during tropical weather. Way to freak out a pregnant lady!! When Derek & I were both gone last month, we had to leave the house prepared for a hurricane since we are in the midst of the season..it was just kind of a weird, scary thought. A lot of the structures that survived Katrina have markers on their property that show how high the water rose during the storm...it's amazing to see. I truly cannot imagine having gone through that and literally losing everything.

4. The unknown, or things that are out of my control. I am a total type A person who likes to have a plan..so if things are out of my control, I feel anxious and helpless.

3. Being at home alone for long periods of time. I have always lived in "safe" neighborhoods, but when Derek would be TDY when we lived in VA..I would always worry. I would have to check the doors about a million times before I could go to bed at night. I love living on base b/c it makes me feel so much more at ease.

2. Never being able to consistently get a good night's sleep again. Until recently, I never had any trouble sleeping whatsoever. I could fall asleep within minutes of my head hitting the pillow and would very rarely wake up in the middle of the night. Once Shelby came along, I had a little bit of trouble falling asleep at night b/c I would worry she might awaken, etc. Then fast-forward to when Shelby was about 5.5 months old..she started sleeping through the night like a champ, and I was so excited to have uninterrupted sleep again! Right around the same time this happened, I started a new prescription that {unbeknown to me} had an uncommon side effect of insomnia...which I definitely experienced. Ugh..it was miserable. My baby was finally sleeping through the night, and I was barely getting 1 or 2 hours of sleep each night. As soon as we realized the culprit of my insomnia, I quickly got off the medication. But my sleep habits have never really returned to normal since then..who knows why?? Okay that was a lot of rambling to basically just say, oh how I wish I could be as good of a sleeper as Miss Shelby...that girl loves her some sleep!

1. And last but not least, I fear losing my hubby or my baby girl. They are my whole world. I would be lost without them.

Sheesh, this was not a fun post to write at.all. So to lighten the mood at bit, here's something that's sure to put a smile on your face!!

Love these two to pieces.

Nine Loves!

2011-08-28T19:00:00.005-05:00

Today is Day Two of the Ten Day You Challenge {click HERE if you missed Day One to catch up}, and today's topic is Nine Loves. So here are nine things that my heart happy....

9. OPI nail polish. I don't know what I love more--the fun colors, or the cute names of the colors! What a fun job it would be to come up with all of the crazy names!

8. The color pink. I'll never forget one of my students asking me last year when I was preggo: "Mrs. Smith, is your baby's favorite color gonna be pink too?" I told her I sure hoped so ;)

7. Five year-olds. I absolutely love Kindergarteners...it is such a fun age.

6. Shelby's sweet smile.

5. Looking forward to things.

4. The changing of the seasons.

3. Mail. Fun mail, that is!

2. Unwinding with my hubby at the end of the day. Derek has been on night float for the past couple of weeks, which means he heads off to work right around the time Miss Shelby goes to bed each night and then returns home in the morning around our normal breakfast time to catch some shut-eye. With him working every night, I have realized how much I cherish our boring little nightly routine. I am not a huge TV watcher, but Derek loves him some History Channel. So every night, we usually lay on the couch, watch TV, and just enjoy our time together. It's nothing exciting or extravagant by any means, but it's nice to just have that quiet time together at the end of each day. I can't wait to have it back again!

1. Saturdays in Athens between the hedges. Only one more week until Georgia football!

Ten Day You Challenge

2011-08-27T06:00:00.003-05:00

I came across the "Ten Day You Challenge" on Stephanie's blog earlier this week, and since it seemed fun and I didn't have anything else planned for the ole blog..I figured, why not?!
So brace yourself, you're probably going to hear more about me over the next ten posts than you ever cared to..ha! I know, I know..you can barely contain your excitement, right?! Well, here goes nothing..

10. For as long as I can remember, I always envisioned myself as a stay-at-home-mama. I'm so thankful that I have the opportunity to live my dream and spend these precious days with Shelby...but I miss teaching more than I ever thought I would.

9. Making new friends is hard for me. I absolutely love being an Air Force wife, and making new friends comes along with the territory..but it is just plain hard for me. I am very shy/reserved when meeting new people and often scared to put myself out there and try new things. I hope & pray that Shelby will have her Daddy's outgoing and fun-loving personality as she gets older so that she will be able to make new friends easily with each move we have to make over the years.

8. I am embarrassed by the number of times I check my email, blogs, and Facebook each day. It's disgusting.

7. Before having a baby, I had all of these ideas and theories about parenting. Then, Miss Shelby arrived and all of that went out the window! Having a baby is a really humbling experience.

6. In high school, I waited in line at midnight for an NSync CD with three of my favorite people. And I still have all of my NSync CDs in my car to this day. I'm not ashamed.

5. Every night before I go to bed, I make a to-do list for the next day. There are few things in life that give me the great sense of accomplishment that I feel when I’m crossing something off my list.

4. I am a compulsive worrier. I worry about everything. If I’m not currently worrying about something, I’ll probably over-analyze until I find something to worry about.

3. I have a lot of insecurities when it comes to my new role as a mommy. I know it's not healthy to compare Shelby to other babies and I try not to..but every now and again, I catch myself doing it. I see other babies far younger than Shelby developing their mobility and worry that I am the reason it took her so long to get moving...I should have done more of this, less of that..you get the idea. I worry she's not getting enough socialization with other kiddos because I'm keeping her home..I wonder if I should do more {or less} Mommy & Me classes..it's never-ending. It is amazing privilege, honor, and blessing to have a child of our own, but the responsibility of it all still overwhelms me at times. I guess I just proved #4 to be very, very true..haha.

2. I am not really a phone person. I would much rather communicate via e-mail, text, or in person. :) The only exceptions to this rule are my mom {who I have always talked to on the phone at least once a day--if not more--ever since I moved away from home} and a few good friends who I unfortunately live far away from now. So if I ever have an extended phone conversation with you, consider yourself lucky..ha! ;)

1. I still keep my childhood blankie & bear in my bed to this day. :)
So I know these weren't exactly big, juicy secrets...but at least they were ten things you probably didn't know about me before! ;) Next up...nine loves! Stay tuned!

{Belated} Vacay Recap & Picture Dump

2011-08-23T06:00:00.003-05:00

As I've mentioned before, Derek was in Seattle for the month of July. Shelby & I were bummed that he would be gone, but the TDY couldn't have come at a better time as July is usually the month that my family vacations every summer at a condo in Ormond Beach, Florida. So instead of being lonely and missing Derek in Biloxi, Shelby & I got to spend the month with my family at the beach..doesn't get any better than that! I posted some of our vacation pictures back in July, but here are a few {in random order} that never made it to the blog...

{beach fun!}

{early morning snuggles with Auntie Em}

{watching the afternoon storm clouds roll in with Grampy}

{we were oh so thankful that there is a good range on our baby monitor, so were able to enjoy some pool time sans baby during naps!}
{first time trying eggs & toast for breakfast..it was a hit!}

I have always looked forward to our vacations in Ormond Beach, but after I moved away from home in 2007 the trips to the beach took on a whole new meaning for me. July was the one time of the year when I got uninterrupted quality time with my family. Yes, we would come home for Thanksgiving or Christmas, but the holidays are always a busy time of year. Whenever we go home, we are always going a mile a minute trying to squeeze as much as we can into our short visit. But when we go to Ormond Beach, everything is laid back, and we just get to be together. This summer was extra special though. Not only did I get time with my family, but Shelby got to spend that time with her grandparents and aunt.

Being away from family is the hardest part of the military life {in my opinion}, so I am very thankful for our time in Ormond Beach. It was a great vacation, and we made lots of memories!

Eleven!

2011-08-21T06:00:00.002-05:00

Happy Eleven Months, Shelby!

We will be celebrating your FIRST BIRTHDAY in just a few short weeks!
We call you "our big girl" all the time because that is truly what you are becoming before our very eyes, and we are just so proud of you!
This next picture isn't the best, but it's a great shot of your toofers! :)Here's your collage of monthly photos from birth until now...
{click on photo to enlarge}And without further ado...
Here is what Miss Shelby is up to these days....

--still sleeping great at night! You usually go to bed around 7:30pm and wake up at 8am. Mommy & Daddy are really enjoying you sleeping in a bit later in the mornings. :)
--your mobility really took off this month! You're still doing your "Air Force crawl" to move around. You like to get up on all fours and rock back & forth, but when you're ready to move you plop your belly back down on the floor to do your version of crawling. We're not sure if your big ole belly is too heavy to lift off the ground, or if you're just content with your mode of mobility...but we have a feeling you will not be doing the "traditional" baby crawl. You march to the beat of your own drum! :)
--you have learned how to go from sitting on your bottom to your "Air Force crawl" position..it is still a very slow and methodical transition from sitting to crawling, but you are doing it and we are SO proud of you!
--you can't go from crawling to sitting yet, but we're sure you'll figure it out soon!
--loving to play on Mommy & Daddy's bed. You think it's so funny to just roll back and forth across the bed! You still don't roll over very often, but whenever you're on our bed you do it about a gazillion times!
--you still aren't pulling up on anything just yet. We try to put your favorite toys on top of something high to entice you to pull up, but you are still just very apprehensive about new things. You get scared and then frustrated you can't do it. We're working on it though!
--your naps are finally getting to be a bit shorter! This is how I know you're really getting to be a big girl! Shelby used to nap for 3 hrs in the morning and 2 hrs in the afternoon...she loves her sleep! But now that she's getting older, her wakeful periods are starting to lengthen and both of her naps are about 1.5-2 hours.
--holding your own bottle! Your Daddy taught you how to do this :)
--your favorite tricks are: waving, blowing kisses, & making "Indian sounds" with Mommy & Daddy. We are also still using baby sign language with you. We regularly use these signs with you: water, milk, yes, no, and more.
--you are a very easy baby and Mommy & Daddy still haven't had to baby proof anything. You usually only crawl to your toys and then you just stop and play there. Knock on wood, you really haven't gotten into anything you're not supposed to yet! But I'm sure that will change soon! ;)
--getting more adventurous with table food! You at least try everything we give you, unless of course it has a strange texture you don't like! ;) Things we have discovered you like this month: the meatballs from our spaghetti, but not the spaghetti noodles; sausage off of our pizza; the crust of my sandwich bread...lots of random things! :)

And this is when you got bored with our photo shoot and starting playing with your toes and the cushion of your glider. ;)

By this time next month, we will have a one year old on our hands! We love you, Shelby!