An Army way of life

Meridith's Second Annual Scarf Swap.

2010-09-21T18:21:00.000-07:00

I participated in Meridith's second annual scarf swap this year. This was my first year to swap and I can NOT wait till next year!!

I could not believe my eyes when I looked to see who my partner was in the swap, and saw that it was my husbands' first cousin Michelle. Michelle is an absolute blast to be around and her 2 precious little ones are too cute for words!! I really wish we lived closer!! I thank God every day for the AMAZING family God blessed me with when I married my husband Rocky!!

Here is the scarf that I sent her.

And here is the scarf I received. I absolutely LOVE the scarf and feel like Michelle could not have picked a better scarf for me. It was actually the original one I had picked out for her. I guess it's true what they all say..."Great minds think alike."

Sorry for the grainy iphone picture...That's all I have at the moment.

Happy Terrific Tuesday!!

Only 6 1/2 months late.

2010-08-15T21:10:00.000-07:00

If you know me at all, you know that I am not crafty by any means. I really don't have the patience for sewing and I think I am too much of a perfectionist when it comes to DIY things.

After saying that...lately I have really been wanting to start doing little projects and DIY things for the girls and the house. I figured it would help keep me busy and give me something to take pride in! So I decided my first project would be to make Gracie wooden nursery letters to hang above her crib. Laney received several personalized things when she was born and since they are sharing a room, I wanted Gracie's half of the room to be personalized as well. I have been talking about doing this since she was born....well really since we found out she was a girl, so I am just 6 1/2 months late....shhhhh don't tell her!

Anyways, here it is....my first project...EVER! Just don't look too close!

After painting them black.

The first coat of color is on.

The final product!!!!! Not too bad! Remember, don't look too close!

THE day.

2010-08-14T20:22:00.001-07:00

As most of you all know, Rocky left last week for Afghanistan. The girls and I went down a couple days before to spend some time with him...just us. We had a really good time and made some good memories. I am so lucky to be able to call him mine!!

By far the hardest day of my life!! Please keep him in your prayers as he is fighting for OUR FREEDOM!!!

Family

2010-08-13T14:51:00.000-07:00

Rocky has been gone for a week. Sometimes if feels like 2 days, sometimes it feels like 2 years. The girls and I are trying to get into a routine and stay busy. The new house is starting to really take shape and starting to feel like a home.

The girls are growing up so much and I have been horrible at blogging the milestones. I just haven't felt like blogging with all of the pre-deployment stress, moving, getting settled again and caring for my family. You understand right?

Anyways on to what you really want to see.

A friend of my MIL's wanted to do family pictures for us before Rocky and Chad(he is going to Iraq in January) left. Here are a couple of my faves.

We did the girls picture last and as you can see Laney had about had it with pictures and was not cooperating. We got a huge kick out of this picture when we saw it because it is sooooo Laney. In fact, she reminds us all too often "I'm not a princess, I'm a diba(diva)"

See ya tomorrow for more pictures of our last weekend with our daddy/hubby.

Laney says the darndest things.

2010-05-14T18:19:00.001-07:00

Laney has been quite the comedian lately. I was reminded by a friend of mine that I need to write it all down so I won't forget all of the funny things she is saying/doing these days. So I decided to just write a blog about it.

She has been very interested in body parts lately and I have been explaining to her in the best way possible what each body part is. She will point to a body part and say "whats this" and my response is, "that's your booty", or "those are mommies boobies...you have them too, they are right there"...so on and so forth.

This morning she was in the middle of the living room floor with her hands on her hips and was shaking back and forth. She looked very sassy might I add! I asked her what she was doing and she said "shaking my boobies". I am sure she was really trying to say booty and not boobies...either way it was hilarious!!

We were at the grocery store the other day and as we were walking down the aisle she would point at the bread for instance and say"bye bye bread...see ya mornin". She did this for just about everything she saw.

She is all about the word "like" lately and uses it all day long...for example...."Mommy, I wike doda(dora)" "Mommy, I wike Gacie(Gracie). Anything you can think of, she likes it and tells me about it ALL DAY LONG!

She can count to 10 in spanish(thanks to Dora). It sounds a little something like this. "Uno, dosh, tres, paco, cinco, sees, seta, ocho, nuebe, dieshhhhhhh. Soooo cute in her little voice.

She talks about what she sees and hears all day long...for example...if Gracie is crying she says "mommy, I hear Gacie" or if daddy pulls in the driveway "mommy, I hear daddy." When we are out walking she points at everything and says "I see trees" "I see green" "I see lello(yellow). She know most of her colors and points them out everywhere!!

She associates people with who they belong to...for instance, if I am talking about Kiki(my mom) she responds by saying "JJ(my dad), Gagi(Lexi), Jekas(jessica) and down the list she goes. If I am talking about grammie(Rocky's mom) she knows she belongs to papa(Rocky's dad).

She is also a man's girl. When we see Papa and Grammie, she always wants papa first and the same goes for JJ and Kiki. Its cute now but we might be in for it when she hits her dating years.

The other day we were in church and she told Rocky "color here daddy" he colored and she shouted "GOOD GIRL DADDY". We are still working on genders...lol.

While we are talking about church....she has spent a couple of weekends with Papa and Grammie and as some of you know Papa is a preacher. One Sunday morning after Papa finished his sermon she clapped and said "Yay Papa!!" She must have been really listening!

My parents have 4 horses. Becca is brown, Phillipe is tan, Sonny is brown, and Reese is paint colored. She LOVES going out and seeing the horses. She points to each one of them and says "becca, phipe, sonny, and COW!" Since Reese is a paint she looks like a cow to her even though she is a horse. She has recently started calling her Reese and now knows the difference between Reese and an actual cow, but I really wish she would keep calling her cow...its just too precious!!

I am sure there are many more but it is late and my brain is fried. Good night...see ya mornin!

Prayers

2010-05-06T18:01:00.000-07:00

I know it has been forever since I have posted and I really have no other excuse other than when I realized I was behind it would have been harder for me to catch up. So then I just decided to take a break from blogging for a while. Well, I am back because I need you guys!!!!

I am calling all of you prayer warriors out there to lift my family up in your prayers. We are approaching our first deployment together. Rocky will be leaving for Afghanistan next month and will be gone for a year. I think I have cried all the tears I can cry. I knew that this would eventually happen and actually thought I was prepared for it! What I was not prepared for is, trying to explain to my now 2 YEAR OLD(WOW) why daddy is gone for a year. She is such a daddy's little girl and her whole face lights up when he is in the room. What is comforting to me is the fact that technology is so advanced these days that we will be able to talk to him via skype and the internet. So please, when saying your prayers, if you would send up a little prayer for Rocky's safety, my sweet girls, and me. We are so proud of our Soldier and are grateful for all the men and women that serve this country and sacrifice themselves FOR OUR FREEDOM!!!

Also, for those of you who don't know...we welcomed Gracie Beth Whitely into this world on February 8, 2010. She weighed 7 lbs 14 oz, 21" long, and had a full head of dark brown curly hair!! Pictures coming soon!!

Spring Outfits

2010-01-13T08:56:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Whitney over at Treasures from our Family, I have found this amazing ebay store that I have started purchasing outfits for Laney for the spring and summer and was even able to get a matching outfit for baby girl when she is born. I never thought that I would be that mom that dressed her girls alike but I am now opening mouth and inserting foot! I can't wait to be that mom!!

These outfits are very much boutique looking but not boutique prices which is WONDERFUL! I have always LOVED the boutique outfits but could not bring myself to pay $50-$60 per outfit. OUCH. I was able to steal each of these outfits for less than $16.00 a piece!!! She also combines shipping within 7 days of purchases. Here are some of my finds for Laney...

And I was able to get this matching outfit for baby girl (yes, we do have a name picked out, and some of you know what it is but we are going to wait to announce it to the rest of you when we announce her arrival.)

So head on over to ebay and check out je*designs(sizes 2t-10) and kbmill2(sizes 3m-24m)...just make sure you are not bidding against me...hehe.

Laney at 20 months.

2010-01-11T08:09:00.000-08:00

Well hello there! I admit, I am a terrible blogger and I am sorry to those readers that are still with me. I promise this year to be a better blogger. I have really wanted this to be a blog to keep up with what Laney is doing and be able to look back on it years from now and remember and reflect on these times. Now that a new baby girl is coming in less than a month, that gives me an even bigger reason to blog! So, if you are still with me...hang in there!

Laney has really grown and matured in the last several months since we have been in VA. She is non stop talking and actually carrying on full conversations with us! We took her to the doctor here for a 20 month check up and the doctor was blown away at her vocabulary and the way she interacted with her.

She weighs 26.5 lbs and is wearing 2t clothes for the most part.
She is in the 50th percentile across the board.
Size 4 diapers.
Size 6 shoe
She is a really good eater and really eats anything we give her!!

She literally repeats every word we say...or at least tries to in her own way. Here are some of our favorite things she is saying/doing.

She will point to her hair, ears, eyes, nose, mouth, teeth, fingers, elbow, tummy, knees, and toes and say the word for each body part.....be careful though, when she feels like it, you just might have a finger in the eye followed by her saying "eeeeeeyyyyeee"
Like I said, she basically says everything we say but the words that she says in her own language that are only understood by a few are "pockey"(pacifier), "gagi"(lexi) don't ask me why she calls her that but when we asked her to say Lexi it came out "gagi" and just stuck. "boay"(boy), "i yu you"(i love you), "mam mam"(yes ma'am), "sir, sir"(yes sir), "pats on"(pants on) "mick mou" (mickey mouse) "titor" (tigger) "poo poo" (pooh bear), "yaney" (laney), "sickey" (sissy) "hot dog"(goofy) we are guessing she calls him hot dog because he does the hot dog dance on her favorite show Mickey Mouse Club House. "piper"(diaper) "haycaca" (helicopter) "pacheeee" (apache) "cacki"(cheerios) "wee wee"(shew wee) "joo"(juice) "mulk"(milk) I know I am missing some but I think I have hit the highlights. There are also many words that she says correctly that everyone understands.
She knows what a puppy, dog, kitty cat, pig, monkey, elephant, duck, cow, fish, bird, and sheep says and has a book that is full of animals and will point to each animal, say the word, followed by their sound.
She recognizes the color yellow and will say "lello" if she sees it
Just this morning she was playing with her blocks on the floor and started counting them...it went something like this..."1,2,3,3,5" clapped and said "yay yaney". We will have to work on that one....speaking of, if she is getting in trouble and I am giving her a warning by counting and I say "1" it is always followed by "2,3" from her. I have since stopped doing that because I can't keep from laughing and mommy needs to be serious when disciplining.
She knows how to put on her shoes, but not always on the right feet.
She can put her pants on but not always the right way.
She is working on putting her shirt on but usually gets frustrated when she can't do it and comes to me for help.
She can use a spoon and fork and is actually really good at it!
We are working on potty training and she has peed in the potty but no #2...although she does come and tell me that she has pooped in her diaper. She usually comes to me grabbing her diaper in between her legs and says "poopie" in a very concerned voice.
She can throw a ball over handed but has not figured out how to catch yet.

I know I am missing something and will most likely be reminded of what I have missed by kiki(my mom) after reading this blog. ;-)

We are so lucky to have a happy, healthy little girl and could not imagine life without her! We are excited to see her take on the roll of big sister in a few short weeks.

On a different note...we leave VA on Thursday to head back to Texas! We will stop in Birmingham and Dothan, AL on our way and see friends from flight school and church. Rocky is currently looking for a job either in the Houston or Dallas area and has not found anything at this point...please keep that in your prayers!!! So we are not exactly sure where we are going to end up but will keep you all posted!

Until next time.

First Haircut and 25 wks.

2009-11-05T05:41:00.000-08:00

We took Laney about 2 weeks ago to get her first haircut. There is a place here in Virginia Beach that specializes in kids cuts so we decided to take her there. The place is called Pigtails and Crewcuts and it could not have been a more perfect atmosphere for kids. They had a train set table, a play area, and the cutest chairs the kids sit in to get their hair cut.

She did better than I thought she would do. I'm sure me holding the sucker out in front of her and telling her she could have the sucker if she would be realllllllly still had nothing to do with it.

She had a ton of hair in the back and the front seems to grow pretty slow. I had the stylist give her a cute little "bob". She tapered it up in the back and just cut some bangs in the front. I just love the cut. I also like that I can style it several different ways. I can pull all her bangs back in a bow or let the bangs down and pull up a small part in a bow or just let it go all together! They are all so adorable!

And finally, I am leaving you with a 25 week belly picture.

P.S. I am sorry if these pictures are not the best quality. I left my digital camera in Texas so all I have is my iPhone. Have a great weekend!!

Yowza

2009-10-27T05:47:00.000-07:00

Was July really my last post?? Where have I been? A lot of things have been going on in our life since the last time I blogged. A big thanks to Kandice who lit a fire under me to start blogging again. There is noooo way I will be able to tell you what has been going on in our lives since July but I will highlight the major events and leave you with some current pictures.

1) My husband was sent to VA for more Aviation training in August.
2) We found out we were pregnant with baby GIRL 2 (Due in February)
3) Lots of complications with the pregnancy sent me to be with my husband in VA.
4) We are all living in a hotel room till January(I can't even begin to tell you how cramped it has gotten)

Now for the pictures.....Laney is now 18 months.I promise to be back sooner than later!!
Tootles!

What does a fishy say??

2009-07-13T16:54:00.000-07:00

Just could not resist posting this. This is our favorite thing that Laney does right now other than giving the baby in mommy's tummy a kiss. ;-)

Have a great Monday!!

WALKING!!!

2009-06-05T11:13:00.000-07:00

My baby girl has been taking about 5-6 steps at a time for a couple of months now but every time I started clapping or getting excited for her she would sit down. Little did I know all I had to do was just ignore her and off she went.

Last night I was doing my hair and Laney was right behind me standing at the tub playing with her babies. All of the sudden out of the corner of my eye I saw something walk past me. I looked down and just followed her. She went around the corner and all the way down the hall!!! Rocky quickly got out the camera and we were able to get a couple of videos of her doing her thang!! Look out world!

ONE year.

2009-04-29T06:03:00.000-07:00

Time really does fly and it seems like yesterday I was looking at this sweet little face.

Now this is the face I see. You are now taking several steps at a time but still prefer to crawl. You will do the hand sign for "more" and have your own sign for "no more" (you shrug your shoulders and raise your hands as if you were saying I don't know) You clap when we praise you. You know where your nose is and can tap on everyone elses nose. You know where your belly is most of the time. You wink(with both eyes) You can sure give momma the glare too when you are in trouble. You tap and point at everything you see. You play peek-a-boo but only cover one eye(you wouldn't want to miss anything). You still shake your head no. You say good girl but it sounds like "goo gur". You still dance when music is played. You kiss and hug your baby's. Speaking of baby...you can point to the baby in Lindsey's tummy..it is precious!!! And last but not least, you are still the light of our lives!

Here are some pictures from your birthday party taken in Alabama before we moved

We love veggie tales

Bob the tomato before he was destroyed

Dive in

Sweet girls share with their mommy's

I made the tutu she is wearing with a little help from my friend Lindsey

Laney's favorite roomate, Kristina

Laney's 2 moms!

I can't wait to see what this next year holds! I love you more than anything baby girl!

TEXAS Bluebonnets!!!

2009-04-24T19:35:00.000-07:00

We took Laney out today for a photoshoot in the Texas Bluebonnets! We had to fight the wind a bit, but over all it was a successful shoot.P.S. The first 2 pictures I think are the best ones but they have this funky glare on them(maybe my finger was in the way or something). If anyone is a whiz on photoshop and can fix that, I would be very grateful.

P.S.S. We miss you Daddy!!!

Just for the record.

2009-04-22T05:48:00.000-07:00

OK, so I knew better not to do the countdown to Laney's birthday. I knew I was not going to be able to keep up with it everyday with moving, Rocky's graduation, Laney's birthday, family coming in town....So for the record here is her at 10 months and 11 months.

2 Days

10 Months

February 16, 2009

One Day
11 Months
March 16,2009

Coming Up: ONE year, Laney's birthday, Rocky's graduation and ball, Pictures in the bluebonnets! I better get busy!

Three Days

2009-04-12T19:00:00.001-07:00

January 16, 2009
9 Months

Four Days

2009-04-12T18:54:00.001-07:00

December 16, 2009
8 Months

Five Days

2009-04-12T18:52:00.001-07:00

November 16, 2009
7 Months

Six Days

2009-04-12T18:48:00.000-07:00

October 16,2009
6 Months

Seven Days

2009-04-09T17:12:00.000-07:00

5 Months
September 16, 2008

Eight Days

2009-04-09T17:05:00.000-07:00

4 Months
August 16, 2008

Nine days

2009-04-07T13:16:00.001-07:00

3 Months
July 16, 2008

10 days

2009-04-06T13:59:00.001-07:00

2 Months

June 16, 2008

Eleven Days

2009-04-05T11:32:00.000-07:00

Thank you to Sharon who gave me the great idea to do a countdown to Laney's birthday.

We have 11 days till my baby girl will be a year old! She has changed soooo much this past year! Lets take a look at each month over the next 11 days!

May 16, 2008
1 month old

10 months

2009-03-12T10:29:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the extremely late posting(she will be 11 months on Monday)

My sweet baby Laney,
You are now 10 months old which means you are only 2 months from being ONE year old. Some of the things you are doing now.

*You love your puffs and would sit in your jumper all day and eat them if I let you. I occasionally will look at you during snack time and you will have a random stray puff stuck to your face. It is the cutest thing.
*You now point at things and look at me and say "huh". Which I know must mean, what is THAT. We are also working on your manners. LOL
*You can now walk behind your walker and have been known to take a few steps to get to where you want to go.
*You are talking constantly which is 90% babble and the occasional words like dadda, mom, bye-bye, ball, ohhh, and huh. If you drop something you look at me and say "uh" but it has yet to be followed by the oh.
*We are still working on sign language which you seem to not be interested in at all. You have now started shaking your head "no" when you don't want something. Some examples are, but not limited to: diaper change, being put down, when asked to say ____, when you are through eating. Your daddy is trying to get you to do it when asked "Did you vote for Obama?" Which I know your response is "Silly daddy, why does it always have to be about politics?"
*If your daddy and I are singing you will stand there and gently bounce your legs up and down to the rhythm of what we are singing. When we stop, you start babbling in the highest pitch your little voice has. Its the sweetest thing.
*You still have no teeth but do just fine with the foods we give you and will eat just about anything...even pickles.
*You are looking more and more like your daddy every day! You are identical to his baby pictures. You even have his mischievous grin.
*You were just diagnosed with asthma and are on breathing treatments(WHICH YOU HATE) but the doc says you will get used to it and eventually grow out of it.

I know there are many more things that you are doing but just can't seem to get my brain working.

Here is a recap in pictures from this past month.

We will be very busy this next month. Here are just a few things that we will be doing.

*Going to Disney world next week
*Dog sitting a boxer and a great dane for a week
*Packing the house
*The Military Ball
*Rocky's graduation from flight school....We are soooo proud of him!!!! WHOOP!
*Laney's FIRST birthday
*MOVING BACK TO TEXAS

So, I apologize if I am absent for a while, but you see, I have good excuses! See ya around!

Another Giveaway!!! Yea!!

2009-01-30T05:24:00.000-08:00

I just entered into another giveaway!!! Sharon from Redbud Designs makes the cutest blog layouts ever! Check her out and enter to win a free blog makeover!! Click on the link above to check out her site and for more info! Good luck!

Pictures, Pictures

2009-01-23T06:10:00.000-08:00

Just thought I would post some cute pics taken over the Christmas holidays. These pics were taken with the Whitely side of the family. Stay tuned for pics from the Jordan side.

Rocky Sr., Rocky Jr., Rocky III, and Laney
The Whitely girls.
Aunt Kelleigh and Wayne. Kelleigh and Pop are half brother and sister 30 years apart. Rocky III is older than Aunt Kelleigh.
Jonathan and Laney being pirates.
Chad teaching Laney all about Mountain Dew.
Just woke up from a nap with Pop. Mommy and Daddy were in College Station. It looks like she was well taken care of!
The kids eating BBQ in College Station.
The Great State of Texas!!!The kids at Grampie and Grannie Annie's house in Arkansas.
Grammie and Laney at the mall in College Station.
Pop and Laney at the mall. Laney decided she wanted to be silly for the camera. She must take after her uncles. Look at that little belly!

Coming Up: Jordan Family pictures....

9 Months (and a week)

2009-01-22T06:46:00.000-08:00

Wow time really does fly! You are already 9 months old and growing so fast. I have tried very hard to take in every milestone but it is difficult when you are doing something different everyday!

You are now crawling faster than I can say crawl. This month you started "spider crawling"(you take after your Auntie Jessica). It is so cute to see you get around that way!You have managed to unload the dishwasher as fast as I can load it. Now if I can only teach you to put the things away!

Baby food is a thing of the past. You want everything we eat and have loved everything we give you. So far we have not had any food allergies. Keep your fingers crossed that you take after your mommy and daddy (in that way).

You are talking all the time now and babbling constantly. You now say mama, dadda, ba(ball), and bye bye(as you now wave your whole arm).
Your absolute favorite thing right now is the puppies. We can be in the living room and I can say "where are the puppies" and you know where they are and go straight for them.

You now take after your friend Gavin. This morning I heard you talking to the dogs like you do every morning but when I turned around, you were inside their crate with them. This is the first time that you have done this and I guess after seeing Gavin do it so much, you just had to try it out! Silly, Silly!
You are getting more and more hair by the day.
Your eyes are still BRIGHT blue!
And for the first time this month you fell asleep by yourself, only it was not in your bed. I still enjoy rocking you to sleep. PLUS, How long am I going to be able to rock you to sleep? I am enjoying every moment before it all goes away!
This month was also your first Christmas in which I don't have too many pictures of. I really wanted to enjoy every moment with you this Christmas so instead of me watching and taking pictures, I experienced it with you. I do have a few though. You were quite the world traveler. We went from Alabama to Texas. Texas to New Mexico with your mommy's family. New Mexico back to Texas to see your daddy's family. Texas to Arkansas to meet your great-grandfather on your daddy's side(Your mommy had not even met him yet). Then Arkansas back to Alabama, stopping in Searcy to see your mommy's second parents from when she was a kid. You did amazing in the car and hardly fussed at all! Here is a recap from Christmas vacation.
Notice the "Proud Home of President George W. Bush." You got that right...we are very proud of that....AND OF HIM!!!~I just had to put in my 2 cents worth!

We love you more than anything!! You are the light of our lives! Happy 9 months baby girl!!

8 Months!

2008-12-17T10:58:00.000-08:00

Whoa Whoa Wee Whoa(as your daddy says), you are not really 8 months are you!

This has by far been the most fun month yet! You are crawling and into everything. Your favorite thing to get into is the entertainment center. You love pushing all the buttons and making your daddy and me crazy trying to get the TV or XBOX back to the screen it was on. In this picture you are a little distracted by veggie tales.

You got your first cold this month which led to a double ear infection. It was sooo sad seeing you cry and pull at your ears. You still scream bloody murder when I suction out your nose but I don't blame you, I tried it the other day....very weird feeling!!!

You can stand really well and will even stand alone momentarily.
Notice the faint bruise on your right cheek....One of the first times you attempted to stand alone, you fell forward onto your jumper. The doc says that I have to let you explore and find your limits and said there will be many more to come. I now cushion your surroundings with blankets.
You are talking up a storm...you have the cutest little squeal when you see something new and especially when veggie tales comes on! You can wave bye-bye and say huh? It is the cutest thing. It usually goes something like this;

Me: Laney, no ma'am.
Laney: huh?(as you keep doing what you are doing)
Me: Laney, that is a no-no.
Laney: huh?

I don't really think you know exactly what you are saying, but it is pretty cute!

You love the high chair and shopping cart! I would have put you in it sooner, but I did not have one of those sanitary covers...Thank you, Mama K for the oh-so-cute cover!!! Very comfortable too!!!
The elastic does go around the whole high chair but this is what it looks like after you have pulled and played with it for a while! Still, way more sanitary than those nasty chairs that they never wipe down.

This month you went to see your daddy fly for the first time! You loved the sounds and watching everyone take off and land!

Look at your baby Ugg's! Aren't they the cutest?

You can now drink out of a sippy cup. You get water with a little bit of apple juice in your sippy. We tried giving you water at first but you are just like your momma and do not like water at all! I don't blame you!

Your favorite foods consist of banana's, apples, blueberries, peaches, pears, prunes, sweet potatoes, sweet peas, and green beans.

Your least favorite foods are carrots, strawberries, and chicken(I have to mix it with a veggie).

I am so proud of the person you have become and have enjoyed every one of your stages! I love you with all my heart baby girl!!

Coming up: Laney's first Christmas and snow(we will be in Red River,NM for Christmas)

This is going to be a very busy next few weeks. I will probably not be able to post again till after the new year so that being said have a
MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

The many faces of Laney

2008-12-04T13:19:00.000-08:00

Just looking through all the thousands of pictures taken over the Thanksgiving holiday and realized my baby girl has the cutest faces ever! I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.
She loves the camera!!!

Oh yeah, she has gained 4 pounds in a month! This girl is serious about her formula!!

HAPPY BRTHDAY!!!

2008-11-28T08:14:00.001-08:00

Happy Birthday to the best husband

Father

and Pilot!

Happy 26th Birthday baby! I love you more than anything!

I got tagged....twice!

2008-11-18T18:36:00.000-08:00

I got tagged by my dear sweet husband from http://apacherocky.blogspot.com and apparently I have not responded fast enough because I was also tagged by Kristin from http://kristinsgirls.blogspot.com. I have a hard time talking about myself(if you actually believe that go ahead and stop right here...the rest is not worth it) but here goes nothing.

7 RANDOM/ AND OR WEIRD FACTS ABOUT ME!

#1. I was born on August 7, 1984: My parents second year anniversary. I was the best/worst anniversary present ever. Ever since then they have celebrated my birthday and not their anniversary. This year they told me they were going to St. Thomas for their anniversary and I asked them where I needed to meet them. I did not get the answer I was looking for. They made up for it by going in with Rocky on my Coach diaper bag!! They knew they owed me big time(and Rocky appreciated it, too).

#2. I was engaged to my wonderful husband after only dating for 3 months. We were then married 3 months later...did I mention we also met online? Gotta give my shout out to www.churchofchristsingles.com! Oh yeah, he bought the ring after only dating for 3 weeks.

#3. I am named after my grandmother, Loyce Lane, and great grandmother, Rachel Lane--my middle name is Lane--and ever since I was a little girl, I have always wanted to name my daughter Laney. I hope she loves the name as much as I do. Her middle name is Paige, which is my sister Jessica's middle name.

#4. I have spent the night in the Dallas County Jail. I laugh about it now, but at the time it definitely was not a laughing matter. I did learn a lot from it, though. If you want to know details you will have to ask. Hint, Hint...PAY YOUR TICKETS PEOPLE!

#5. I can be a total blonde at times....I used to think Alaska was an island, would attempt to throw my gum out the window with the window still up, used to think that however many teats a female dog had meant that she would have that many puppies, would never get a joke if my life depended on it, and most of the time the joke was about me. But my mom and dad will tell you that I have the best sense of humor about it and actually learned to laugh at myself!

#6. I absolutely love anything and everything about football. My favorite Pro team is the Dallas Cowboys (and college is the Aggies by default) but will sit and watch anyone and actually get into it no matter who is playing.

#7. I love my family more than anything and could not picture my life any better than it is. When Rocky and I married, he told me we were moving to Fort Rucker, AL. I was beside myself and did not want to leave Texas or my family behind. Now being here for almost 2 years I have really learned to like it and am going to have a very hard time leaving it all behind. This is where we started our family, had our first child, and found our first church. But I am very excited about starting a new life back in Texas and seeing where the road takes us next.

Now there you have it...7 random/weird facts about me!

Now to randomly tag seven peeps.

Tanya
Lindsey
Linsey
Kandice
Tara
Kara
Sharon

7 Months!!

2008-11-17T14:01:00.000-08:00

Another month has just flown by us and I realized on Sunday that my baby girl is 7 months old.

Laney is quite the comedian these days and has Rocky and I laughing all the time. If she is laying in my lap she loves to arch her back where her head is hanging off my knees and kicks her feet back and forth. She would do a back flip off my lap if I would let her.
She is talking constantly and now gargles, spits, and blows bubbles. I wonder what sound she will come up with next. We were on our way to see Rocky fly one day, and to get out to where he is, you have to drive down this gravel road. Just about when I hit the gravel she starts up in the back seat "aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhh" We have been out there 3 times now and all three times she has done this. I thought the first 2 times it was coincidence but the 3rd time, I knew she knew what she was doing. She was starting to talk because she knew the vibrations changed her voice. Silly girl!

She is so close to crawling it isn't funny. She has all the mechanics down but just can't seem to sync them together. She shuffles her little feet back-n-forth, moves her hands forward and back, lifts her bum way in the air and then does a nose dive right in the carpet. She has even managed to crawl backwards. I am sorry if some of these pictures seem a little fuzzy or bright in places. When the shades are open the sun comes barreling in, which does not make for good lighting when taking pictures.
She has also been practicing her yoga, just like her momma! As you can also see, she loves sucking on her bottom lip, and has even mastered smacking!
She now reaches out to her daddy and I when we hold our hands out to her. She sometimes thinks its a game and wants to go back and forth from one to the other. We can't help but play along. The only other person she has reached for is our preacher Brian. Rocky and I hang out with he and his adorable kids quite a bit and she has gotten to know him pretty well. She loves all the attention she gets from him and the bites of "adult" food he gives when mom isn't looking. I tell you, you can't even trust a preacher these days! JK!

Speaking of food.........she still loooooooooooves it!

She is also enjoying the formula and is becoming quite a chunky monkey.

My dad saw the picture of Rocky, Laney and I on the Apache and called to ask me what was wrong with the picture. Apparently, Rocky and I both had sun glasses on in the picture and Laney did not so the next day these showed up on our door step. Thanks Papa J......she is too cool for school!!!
We can't wait to see whats in store this month! Happy 7 months baby girl!!!

Check her out!!!!!

2008-11-14T15:06:00.000-08:00

I have entered in my first Christmas contest. My friend Sharon with Red Bud Designs has started a really neat Christmas contest. If you go to her site and post a comment on her blog about your favorite Christmas song, tradition, movie...... your name will be entered to win a free personalized Christmas card! I could not wait to get my name in the hat seeing as this is my sweet baby girls first Christmas and I am going all out this year! What a great way to start off the holidays! You're great Sharon!!!

P.S. If you want a personalized Christmas card, go ahead and pay for one, cause you know I am going to win!!!! hehehe hohohoho! MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

Mirror, Mirror

2008-11-12T08:59:00.001-08:00

I was looking through some of the pictures from our Texas trip and I just had to post these...

I have always tried to capture Laney's facial expressions when looking in a mirror but most of the time I am holding her and it is a little hard to capture the moment and be part of the moment at the same time if you know what I mean.

Well this particular day she was sitting in Mama K's lap(my mom) while she was putting on her makeup. My mom has one of those 2 sided mirrors where one side is magnified and shows every pore on your face and the other side still magnified but not so much! Laney decided she wanted to be part of the show!
How does this thing work again?

Hiiiii mom!

Does this mirror make me look fat?

Wow, you really can see every pore!

TOOOOOO CUTE!!!!!!!

Lots of Updates!

2008-11-03T07:50:00.000-08:00

Well this has been one busy month...Hmmmm where to start...

October 18...
Laney and I went to Texas for 10 days. My friend Daria got married October 25 and I was her Matron of Honor. We had a really fun time visiting friends and family and I know they were all excited to see Laney again! I took Laney down to Rocky's parents to stay the night with them so I could attend the rehearsal dinner and wedding the next day. This was the first night I spent away from her and I will say I was a nervous wreck and did not know what to do with myself. Thanks Grammie and Pop for taking care of sweet pea!! Still waiting on pics from the trip and the wedding(no pressure mom) and will post as soon as I have them!

October 28...
We returned to a very lonely and bored daddy! He was super excited to see Laney and what all she had accomplished in 10 days. She is now up on her hands and knees rocking back and forth and will every once in a while do a push up! She learned that from her daddy!!
If you notice the big boo boo band aides on her thighs, she had 4 shots at the doctor for her 6 month check up. Speaking of doctor...

October 29...
Going in for her check up I was going to ask him about her weight seeing as she is just now starting to wear 3-6 month clothes. I have been a little concerned for a while now but knew she was eating plenty( she is a little chow). She is still breastfeeding every hour and a half to 2 hours, eating solids and is sleeping through the night, so I know that she was not starving. When they placed Laney on the scale she weighed 12lbs. 13oz and mommy's tears started flowing! What in the world am I doing wrong? I explained to him my frustrations and he said that a lot of moms milk supplies reach a peak and their milk supply does not grow with their baby! So the solution is to continue breastfeeding and give her 2 ounces of formula after every feeding. I was really hoping to solely breastfeed till she is one but her weight and health is much more important than anything else! For all you breastfeeding moms out their, if you can give any advice, I would really appreciate it! Now onto a happier note...

October 31...Laney's first Halloween!
I was really excited to go to Texas and get Laney a Dallas Cowboys cheer leading outfit for Halloween but when we went to the Dallas Cowboys pro shop all they had was size 2T and up! So my little sweet pea was a beautiful little blossom!

We went to trunk or treat at church and went trick or treating Halloween night. We basically went just for fun because Laney sure can't have candy yet and mommy sure doesn't need candy. So I turned down everyone's request to give Laney candy because I knew I would end up eating it anyway! I figured I would let that piece of candy go to a well deserving child that will thoroughly enjoy it and drive their moms crazy with energy! Your welcome moms!

November 1...Chili fest at Fort Rucker.
Every year Fort Rucker puts on a chili fest with sponsors around the area making their best chili(and in some cases worst). They offer helicopter rides for a small fortune and have all the helicopters on display. We went to join in on the festivities and of course had to have a photo shoot by the Apache(which is what daddy is flying).

Daddy put Laney on top of the hell-fire missle...she looks a little concerned!

So proud of her daddy!!!

And last but definitely not least...
As we were standing, looking at the black hawk(boooo) I saw my absolute favorite nurse who was my nurse in the hospital throughout my whole labor and delivery process. She was the one who walked me through every step, helped deliver laney by c-section, walked me through breastfeeding and even sent me a personal thank you note after coming home from the hospital tell me how wonderful of a patient I was! She deserves the nurse of the year award! We stood there and talked for a while and after walking off, I realized I did not get a picture of her and Laney together, so I turned around and told her I knew she would call me insane but I must have a picture of the two of them together, and she totally agreed!!Whew, that was a long post!

Coming up...7 months!!

6 months!

2008-10-16T06:03:00.001-07:00

Wow my baby girl is half a year today! I was looking at pictures this morning of the past 6 months and it is just amazing to me how much she has changed..Lets take a look...

1 month

2 months
3 months
4 months
5 months.
6 months
Laney girl,

Your mommy and daddy are so impressed at the little girl you have become. We have watched you blossom into a happy, social baby! In just these past short 6 months you have achieved so much!

You are now "commando crawling" and rolling everywhere...if you want something you go after it, you kick those little feet and shoot yourself forward or scoot on your elbows to get it!

You know what your food is and your mouth is wide open from the time I get it out of the cabinet to the time I put the spoon in your mouth, you can even feed yourself, you are not as neat as mommy is but you achieve what you want! If I pause at all and you don't have food in your mouth at all times you start to fuss...Your Grammie says you get that from your daddy's side, they sure do love their food!

Here, you see mommy with the food! I haven't even put you in your chair yet! You love your jumperoo and jump and swing every time you are in it with a huge smile on your face!You looooove your veggie tales, I have tried putting on other things to stimulate you(like baby einstein...) and you are not interested in the least. You watch veggie tales until the ending credits...then fuss, until I start it over or start a new one.Your eyes are stiiiiiilll blue, just like your daddy and you have your daddy's profile. Lets just face it, you look like just like your daddy!!You are also quite the drama queen, I have been coughing with a cold the past couple of weeks and just the other day you started "fake" coughing just for attention, just ask your Mama K, she was on the phone with me and heard the whole thing. Just as soon as I looked at you, you stopped and gave me this huge grin. I could not help but laugh! I guess you get that from me, your mommy can be a drama queen at times!!

We love you sooooo much baby girl and can't wait to see what is in store the next 6 months!

Love,
your mommy and daddy!

P.S. You are finally wearing 3-6 month clothes!

Laney's first mess!

2008-10-13T19:41:00.000-07:00

The past couple of weeks Laney has been rolling all over the place and finding all kinds of things to get her hands on.

Laney always has play time in the morning on the floor in the living room while I am getting ready for the day. She is always in my sights and I can see what she is doing at all times, but this particular morning I had some laundry that needed to be folded. I walked out of the room, went and got the laundry out of the dryer and came back to find this....we are talking 45 seconds to 1 minute here people....
Daddy says she has good taste though!!!

Pumpkin Patch ( long overdue)

2008-10-13T19:15:00.000-07:00

We took Laney to the pumpkin patch a couple of weeks ago when it first opened and I am just now getting pics up...At this age she is very easily distracted and it was extremely hard to get her attention, but we were able to catch some great pics none the less. Enjoy!Mommy and baby girl!

Ummm mom, what am I supposed to do with this...
Ohhhh pretty flower....I have got my eye on you scarecrow....Precious!
Beautiful blue eyed baby girl!!!

Peek-a-boo!!!

2008-10-10T10:10:00.000-07:00

Here is a video of Laney playing peek-a-boo with mommy! She is so much fun at this age!!!

Upcoming posts...Laney's first mess, and 6 months old...

5 Months!

2008-09-23T07:31:00.000-07:00

I am a little late posting this seeing as Laney was 5 months old on the 16th, but better late than never...

Laney you are growing up so much and your daddy and I are just amazed at the little person you have become...

You are now rolling all over the place, I actually found you under the kitchen table the other day after just going to the bathroom...

Everything goes in your mouth, and if I am holding it you want it. You love sending random text messages from mommy's i-phone while she is typing.

You are now talking up a storm and wanting all the attention!

You love hanging with your daddy while he is playing halo.

and you are still in 0-3 months clothes....but have the cutest rolls ever!

Laney we love you more than anything and are so happy you are in our lives! What would we do without you?

Happy 5 months baby girl!!!

New Look!!

2008-09-18T11:48:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Sharon who posted a blog about a new site that she found called scrapblog in which you can go and create a digital scrapbook and post the pages as your new header, I have found my new hobby. I am not very computer literate but with the help of my hubby I have figured it out. It is still a work in progress but as I get more time to play around with it I should be updating my header soon! For now, I hope you enjoy my work in progress! Thanks Sharon!! I am also wanting ideas for a new catchy blog name, if you have an idea shoot me a comment.

Updating!

2008-09-03T20:26:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since my last post, mainly because I have to fight my hubby for the computer. If you have taken a look at his blog lately you can see that he is quite the blogger! I have wanted several times to blog about the topics he has blogged about but just could not find the words. He says everything I have wanted to say and what America needs to hear. We have become quite the political family and are very concerned with the direction this country is headed in. As you can see we are rasin' Laney right!!!

Now on to what you are really here for:
Laney is just growing up so fast and is becoming quite the social butterfly. It always takes us forever to get out of church because everyone wants to see that beautiful smile of hers. She is especially fond of the "blue haired" ladies, maybe its the wrinkles!!
At her four month check up the doctor suggested we start solid foods. She was in the 60th percentile at 2 months and has dropped down to the 10-15th percentile. I was already somewhat concered since she is still in newborn clothes(some 3 month). He said that she is doing just fine as a breastfed baby and did not think I should supplement with formula at all. He just wanted her to have the extra calories that rice and foods can give. So we started on the wild adventure of feeding a 4 month old. Rice was a success and she seemed to really like it. Oatmeal was not a success as you can see. We just love her face in this picture!

Next was sweet potatoes which was another success and then green beans is what we are trying now. I think green beans is by far the favorite.

She even managed to steal the spoon from me! Silly girl!!

Well its getting late and blogspot is not cooperating very well for me tonight...maybe its just my inexperience. These will have to do for now.
P.S...My parents and little sis came into town to see Laney(not us) and we put them to work. We are in the process of trying to sell our house and we decided it needed some curb appeal. If you would like to see before and after pics, please refer to my hubby's blog as he has beaten me to the punch and blogged about it! Enjoy!!!

One year ago today!

2008-08-15T13:41:00.000-07:00

I have seen someone else blog about this topic and thought it was so clever I wanted to blog about it myself!

One year ago today I was feeling extremely nauseous, moody, headache y, excited and nervous all in one as I sit in the waiting area with my friend Sarah waiting for the results to come back telling me that I was going to be a mommy. As I sit down with my husband at lunch to tell him he was going to be a father, and as we call our parents and tell them they are going to be grandparents for the first time!

This time last year we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into but knew we were getting ready for the ride of our lives!!!

Tomorrow our baby girl will be 4 months old and thinking back a year ago I never thought life would be this good! We watch her grow and learn everyday and thank the Lord above for trusting us with his precious package!

Join the Club!

2008-08-05T19:37:00.000-07:00

My husband Rocky has now joined the blogging club. For those of you interested in reading, I will advise you to keep an open mind and use your thinking cap to understand his sense of humor. He is very vague but very entertaining!!! Enjoy!!! You gotta love him...or at least I do!

Lifetime friends!

2008-08-05T09:51:00.000-07:00

Our dear friends Joe, Kim, and Reagan are now enjoying their new home at Fort Lewis, Washington(just outside Seattle). This is one thing about military life that I do not enjoy.
When we moved here I was so excited about meeting new people and making life time friends but as our friends are slowly moving away I start to wonder if my heart can handle it! I did not realize how sad it would be to leave friends that we have come to love so much. Kim has been an inspiration to me as a mommy. She walked me through so many questions I had about birth, breastfeeding, and motherhood. She has been an amazing example to me and I pray that I am the same mother to Laney that she is to Reagan.

Joe has been a great example to Rocky as he sees what it is like to be a military father to a beautiful daughter! There are many times that Rocky and I talk about how wonderful of a father he is to little Reagan!And then there is little Reagan! We have seen her grow up so much in the time that they have been here! She is an absolute doll and loves Laney so much! Kim always tells me that she asks about her and wants to constantly be around her! When we are with them Reagan is so gentle with Laney and just likes holding her hand. She gives sweet sweet kisses and just loves on Laney! She is going to be a wonderful big sister some day!We will miss them and look forward to a reunion soon!!!

Coming soon: Laney laughing video, my birthday presents, and working out! Stay tuned!!!

3 months!!

2008-07-22T14:07:00.000-07:00

Little Laney,

These past 3 months have flown by so fast. You are growing so much day by day and your daddy and I are amazed at the little person you have become. You are now smiling at everything and everyone and talking up a storm. You are such a blessing to us and we honestly can't imagine life without you. I honestly don't remember not being a mommy!

This month you have been on your first airplane ride, went to Texas for the first time(you weren't born there but you got there as fast as you could), had your first set of shots(which mommy cried more than you), been away from your daddy for 10 days at a time, went to the beach for the first time, experienced a military 4th of July, and been to Georgia and Florida(you are such a traveling girl).

You have discovered your hands and study them often. If you don't have your pockey in your mouth your fingers are the next best thing. You even choke yourself at times which scares mommy half to death.

You have just started mocking mommy and daddy and trying to make the same noises we make. When we are talking to you. You are so social and such a morning girl. I wake up every morning to you talking to yourself and kicking the bassinet as hard as you can.

Tummy time has gotten a little better. You will now last for about 5 minutes before you have had enough and get very agitated. Last month you accomplished rolling from your tummy to your back and you have now mastered that!!

You are still breastfed and are sleeping through the night from about 9pm to 7 am. You wake up eat and are back asleep for another hour or so! You never cry unless you are hungry or sleepy. Speaking of sleepy we are still working on getting you to put yourself to sleep. Mommy just can't stand to hear you cry.

You are the light of our lives baby girl and we are so blessed to have you!! We love you dearly!

Mommy and Daddy!

4th of July

2008-07-07T07:20:00.000-07:00

I thought I better post this before it gets too far away from the 4th. Last Thursday I took Laney to have her pictures made at Sears. They were having a 20% off military discount that day and since I had not taken her yet I wanted to take full advantage of it. I had bought her a little dress for the 4th of July so I thought, what better time to have some patriotic pictures done of her. I took Rocky's ACU jacket with me and had them use it as a prop. She did so well and we were actually able to catch some of her smiling a little. The lady that was taking the pictures was a little over the top trying to get her to smile so in a couple of them she has this really confused look like "why in the world is this strange lady talking to me like this".It is so rewarding to peak over the bassinet in the morning to hear her just talking up a storm and when she catches me peaking she gives me the sweetest smile ever.

On Friday the 4th we went over to our Friends Buster and Sarah's place to all go and watch the Fireworks on post. They have 2 boys, a 3 year old and a 6 month old. Fort Rucker has a freedom festival every year on July 4th and a fireworks display. The fireworks were amazing and Laney did not seem to mind them one bit. She slept the majority of the time and when she was awake she was so mesmerized by them. Here is a picture of Laney and her older boyfriend Taylor getting ready to head out to the fireworks. And here is Daddy and Laney.And I am leaving you with one of me and Rocky. It seems like forever since we have taken a picture together. Our whole camera is filled with Laney! I can't believe how long my hair has gotten!

The Sweatshop

2008-06-07T14:17:00.000-07:00

Rocky is between phases right now in his flight school training. He has just finished the training helicopter and is waiting to start the apaches. During this down time they have put him in a class called ALSE(Aviation Life Support Equipment). He just started this class last week and the first thing they are having them do is learn how to sew. Rocky calls it the sweatshop. The reason for this is to be able to repair survival vests, flight suits, flight bags, fancy purses(I'll get to that in a minute)and anything else that needs stitching up. On Wednesday he brought me home a homemade pot holder. We had a friend go through the course about a month ago and he made his wife a purse. I told Rocky that if he ever went to the course I expect a purse out of it. So after the pot holder was done he got to work on the fancy purse. They were given all the material required to make this "tool bag" just a manly name for fancy purse. It had to have pockets, a zipper, handles, and rings on it. When he brought the finished product to me I was totally shocked at how well made it is! Now that I know he can sew I told him to get to work on Laney some outfits! Now we are in the market for a sewing machine!

We did it!!!!!

2008-06-06T05:35:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a pretty rough day for Laney as we were out and about all day long shopping, getting nails done, lunch with daddy, thrift store with Grammie and Pop, and dinner with Mr. Brian. When we finally arrived at home at 9:00pm, I got Laney all ready for bed, fed her and put her to bed finally at 10:00pm. We have given Pop and Grammie our bed and Rocky and I are sleeping on the twin bed in Laney's room, a little tight but brings back memories of when we were first married visiting Bobby and Danelle and sleeping on the twin in their guest room. We thought since we were already there this would be a good time to get Laney in her crib. The past three nights that Grammie and Pop have been here she has done wonderful and did not waiver from her previous sleeping schedule in her bassinet. She normally wakes at 2:00am for a feeding, 5:30am for a feeding and then about 8:00am and is up for the morning.

Last night we were finally in bed at 10:00pm. I woke up at 3:30am shocked that Laney was still sleeping and had not woken up. I got up to check on her and make sure she was still breathing(yes, I am still going through panic mom phase) she was of course sound asleep just like a little angel. I went back to bed thinking any moment now she will want to eat. I woke up with Rocky at 6:00am and she was still sleeping!!! By the time 6:30am rolled around I looked like I had a double breast augmentation and was super engorged, I had to feed this child!!!! I let her sleep till about 6:45 and gently woke her up to feed her! She was clearly not ready to eat and fell asleep within minutes of eating. I then decided to pump to relieve some pressure. It is now 8:00am and she is still sleeping! I hope this continues and is not just her being worn out from the day yesterday! Rocky has been wanting me to pump more anyway so he can feed her as well, he feels a little left out, so if she keeps this up he will get his wish, I just hate pumping because it is soooo unnatural.

She's a Genius!!!

2008-06-03T18:48:00.000-07:00

My mother in law(Sally) and father in law(Rocky) are in town along with my brother in law Chad. I was going to get in the shower and laid baby girl down for tummy time when my mother in law yelled, "Mommy, she is rolling over" I came running back in there to see Laney struggling to get that leg over, and I immediately started looking for the camera to capture the moment. Of course when you need the camera the most you can't find it! I was searching all over the house for that darn thing and when I finally found it I had missed the whole thing!!!

I just had to see her in action since I had missed it all due to me running around the house like a chicken with my head cut off, so I rolled her back over to see her do it again. This time camera on and ready to go! See video below! She is not very happy doing it but she sure is cute in action! I might just be a bragging mom, but isn't this a little soon for her to be rolling over? I am super excited about this milestone but now that I think about it, I am not going to be able to lay her on the bed or the changing table for a second without making sure she is not rolling off the edge. Can I go back in time?

My hero the vacuum.

2008-06-02T10:01:00.001-07:00

Laney has been sleeping so well at night but I guess she just does not sleep that hard during the day for naps because just as soon as I put her down for her nap she is awake within 20 minutes. She sleeps really well on my shoulder or in my lap but just like before when we were having a hard time putting her to sleep at night she cries very shortly within being put down. I am getting nothing done this way and would love to hold her all day long but it takes a toll on you after a while!
She is not to the point yet where she can put herself back to sleep either.

One day when she was in her swing I was trying the crying it out method that so many people tell me to do. After about five minutes of listening to her cry, I could not stand it anymore but I knew that is the only way she would learn to put herself to sleep so I started thinking of every way that I could tune her out because I was so close to just picking her up, I hate to hear my baby girl cry. I knew that I had to get some vacuuming done so I thought what a great way to get some house work done and tune her out at the same time. I went and got the vacuum and started vacuuming in the same room she was in. Not a minute and a half went by and I looked at her and she was passed out. I thought it could have been just a coincidence. The next day when we were going through the same thing I went to get the vacuum to see if that was really it, and sure enough Rocky timed it and it was 2 minutes!!!! Simply amazing!!!! I have now started to put her in her crib to sleep for naps and today I tried the vacuum trick in there. I have posted a picture of the vacuum and Laney sound asleep. Yes, the vacuum is running not 5 feet from her! I wish I could sleep like that!

Tummy Time

2008-05-24T05:51:00.000-07:00

We started doing tummy time recently, Laney lasts for about 7-10 minutes max and then screams her head off. I thought I would tell the story in pictures so you all can see it for yourself. Wow this is pretty cool!!! Look at those bright colors! Ok, this is a little boring maybe I can get up and get out of here. I have had enough and I give up. Ok , Mom come get me now!!!!!

She's one month old!!!

2008-05-22T14:11:00.000-07:00

Well technically she is 5 weeks old yesterday, but I have not posted her one month pictures or progress this month.

Little Laney is growing so fast. When we left the hospital she weighed 6lbs. At her 2 week check up she was 7lbs. 5oz. and when we had to go to the doctor for her thrush she was 8lbs. 9oz. There is no doubt she is getting fed.

Her sleeping pattern has progressively gotten better. Last night she slept from 10pm till 4am. I kept waking up and checking on her to make sure she was okay. There is no doubt that I was ready for her to wake up and eat because by the time she woke up I had leaked through 2 nursing pads through my shirt and onto the sheets.

Funny story:
I had been begging Rocky to get me Guitar Hero for months and the week that we got home from the hospital he finally got me the game. I guess he thought I would like to play it in my spare time...haha. Well while the family was holding and enjoying Laney, Rocky and I were playing guitar hero. I guess she got so used to hearing the classic rock that now when she is fighting sleep we have to have one of us start playing guitar hero and she immediately doses off. If she is not fully asleep and we stop playing she starts crying again. She also hates the car seat so I am now looking for any recordings I can get of guitar hero to play in the car. If any of you have any suggestions that would be great! Below are several of her one month pictures I took. She is growing so fast. The picture in the middle is of my best friend here at Rucker. She and her husband will be moving to Fort Lewis Washington in July and I am dreading them leaving. That is one thing about the Army that I don't like is that you get attached to people and then they leave. :-(( Isn't she adorable...and I am not biased at all!

Updates

2008-05-20T00:36:00.000-07:00

I have been horrible about blogging lately but for good reason. Last week my sister Jesika who has been dying to come and see Laney finally got to come and see her precious niece. She really enjoyed herself and also managed to scare mommy half to death. We were on our way to the mall and she was in the back with Laney. About half way to the mall she spoke up and asked me if Laney had thrush. I immediately freaked out because I had never heard of this before and started asking all kinds of questions. Then proceeded to make Laney an appointment ASAP. Turns out she did have thrush and thanks to Aunt Jekas I would have never known and made my poor baby girl suffer. After getting her antibiotics and getting it home I was preparing to give Laney her first dose and opened the bottle and smelt this awful smell, and knew that I was going to have a time giving this awful medicine to a 4 week old. Just as soon as I put the coated q-tip in her mouth she grabbed a hold of it, immediately started sucking and would not let go. It was the funniest thing ever. Here is a pic of Aunt Jekas and Laney. If you look closely you can see Laney smiling too. This is how I can tell that she is really sleeping good!

Grammie(Rocky's mom) finally got to come in town and see Laney for the first time last week. We have really enjoyed having her here and she has been much help. Here is a pic of her and Laney in the glider that she and my parents all went in on. It has become a house rule that whoever has Laney gets the chair.

Yesterday was a pretty eventful day as well. Laney had been somewhat fussy yesterday afternoon and up into the evening. During one of our feedings I noticed Laney was having a hard time swallowing and started coughing, I looked down to find blood filling the nipple shield and running down her chin. I immediately took her off and put her to the other breast. After her feeding I was burping her and she vomited the blood that she swallowed along with this yucky green phlegm type stuff. After calling the nurse practitioner, Aunt Jackie, and cousin Michelle, (thank you all for your help) Rocky and I were rushing to the drug store to get Normal Saline because it sounded like she might have been congested, Lansinoh for my bleeding breast, and a smaller bulb syringe being that the one given to us in the hospital was way too big for Laney's little nostril. That helped tremendously and at her next feeding there was no spit up at all! She just wanted to make sure that mommy was paying attention. Here is a pic of Laney sleeping peacefully on mommy's chest. I wish I looked this cute sleeping!

And to end, I just had to post this adorable picture of Daddy and Laney playing X-Box. Aunt Jekas and I had gone to Target to get some things and left Laney with Daddy, and this is what we came home too. You can't help but smile!!!

By the way, Laney now weighs 8lbs 9oz, and will be 5 weeks Wednesday. She has gained a whole 2 pounds!!! YAY!

The Pockey

2008-05-09T08:05:00.000-07:00

I told myself that I would never use a pacifier(pockey) when I had decided to breastfeed. I had heard that using them would create nipple confusion and it would be harder for her to successfully breastfeed. After going through a hard time with breastfeeding in the beginning my lactation consultant gave me a nipple shield and told me to try that. Laney immediately took to it! When we went through the hard time with her not sleeping in her bassinet, my mom told me that a pockey would do wonders. I then put it in her mouth just to see if it would help. Heck, I knew there could be no nipple confusion because she was already breastfeeding from a rubber nipple. I think I have now created a monster. She is by far the cutest monster I have ever seen. She loves her pockey. I have posted a few pics of her with it. She holds on to it like someone is going to take it from her, it is sooooo precious!!! We got the name pockey from Daddy, he used to call it that when he was little I thought it was so cute it just stuck!!!

Aunt Jekas came in town yesterday. Rocky, Laney and I all went and got her from the airport in Birmingham. Since the airport is 3 hours away we left the night before and stayed in a hotel and picked her up the next morning. She did really well in the hotel that night. Jekas will be here till Wednesday and will be an amazing help to me so I can get some much needed things done. I will post pictures of Aunt Jekas and Laney in the next blog.

We are also really excited about Grammie coming to see Laney. Grammie, Pop, Chad, and Jonathan have not seen Laney yet and I know they are chomping at the bits to get here. Grammie will be here on Tuesday and will stay for a week and then they will all come the first part of June(if Pop can wait that long). I will keep ya'll updated as things happen.

Laney is getting so big and it just seems like yesterday we were coming home from the hospital. Man time really does fly!!!

Update

2008-05-04T16:50:00.000-07:00

Well, I think we finally did it. Last night was the first night that Laney slept in her OWN bassinet(mommy was within inches of course.) She did wake for feedings which I would put her with me until she was finished and asleep and then place her back in her bed. Thank you to all the other moms out there for their advice and support. She really adjusted well, I would just put her in her bassinet at night and when she started crying I would get her out without letting her cry for long at all. She finally just got used to being in there and would go longer and longer each time she was set in her bassinet.

My mom, dad, and sister left yesterday morning. This was the first time that it was just Daddy, Mommy and Laney. I was a little nervous about them leaving just for the simple fact that if something happened I had someone else here for help. We did really well and are adjusting as a happy family. I have been meaning to post pictures of Laney's room all complete(thanks to my mom, dad, mamaw, and sister Lexi.) When I was admitted to the hospital by my doctor I had nothing packed and her room was no where near finished. My mom, dad, mamaw, and Lexi spent the days I was in the hospital finishing her room. It was nice to come home and be completely surprised by the amazing transformation. Grammie(Rocky's mom) made the quilt that is on the twin bed, Pappa J(my dad) made the changing table for my little sister Lexi when she was born, it has now been passed down to Laney newly sanded and stained by Lexi herself and Mamaw(my grandmother). Mama K(my mom) made the curtains that match her bedding. I love how everyone has contributed something to her room. See pics below.

I could not post this blog without posting one of my growing baby girl. This is one of her in her bobby bouncer that we have just started liking. This past week we had her 2 week checkup and she had gained a pound and grew almost 2 inches. I am glad to know she is eating well!!

Motherhood is Amazing!!

2008-04-28T19:14:00.000-07:00

This week has been a total blur yet the most amazing week ever. Laney is growing and changing so much each and every day. We are managing to get just enough sleep to function throughout the day. Breastfeeding is going really well thanks to the medela nipple shield and I am starting to figure out this mother thing.

One problem that I am having is I am having trouble putting her down. From the first night we brought her home she has slept in the bed with us. I was so afraid that she was going to stop breathing and I wanted to be there to save her!!! I have heard that all mothers go through that same thing. Well since that night every time I try to put her in her bassinet she starts screaming and of course I am not going to just let her cry so what do I do, I pick her up and rescue her!!! Rocky has told me that he is not going to have a 2 year old sleeping in the same bed with us. If all you moms out there could give me some advice on breaking her of this habit without mom and baby both screaming their head off that would be great!!! I always told myself that my children would never sleep in the same bed as us and I have found I am eating my words.

Yesterday we took Laney to church for the first time. Momma K had to go get her a preemie outfit because all of her newborn clothes were too big! She did amazingly well and slept through the whole service . I have posted a picture of the family before church and one of daddy and baby girl! Enjoy!!

Laney Paige

2008-04-21T17:54:00.000-07:00

Well, without further adieu I would like to introduce to you the newest member of the Whitely family. Laney Paige Whitely was born on April 16, 2008 at 5:12pm, weighing in at 6lbs, 5 oz. She is the light of our life!! It is so intriguing for us to watch every move she makes and all the facial expressions while she sleeps. As you all probably know, we don't have much time to blog right now as we are getting used to sleeping patterns and breastfeeding and just enjoying our daughter. As I write this she is peacefully asleep on my chest. It is so rewarding being a mom and I never knew I could love something so little so much. I have posted several pics of our beautiful baby girl from the hospital and a couple from homecoming. Enjoy!!!

Here goes nothing!

2008-04-14T07:28:00.000-07:00

I have known several friends to blog and thought about it before, but never thought I had enough going on in my life to blog about. Well, I now have a reason to blog seeing that I will have my first child here in about a week or so. This will be a great way to let the family know how things are in Alabama and let those grandparents see the pics of their precious and only grandchild!! As for what is going on in our lives so far:

Rocky and I are currently living at Fort Rucker, Alabama where he is attending flight school for the army. It is looking like we will be here for another year or so. We have purchased our first house going on a year ago and I am 38 weeks pregnant(lets get this child out). Alabama is nice but its just not home! We have made great friends here and hope to keep lasting friendships with them. I quit working about a month ago to prepare for baby's arrival. Laney Paige is her name!! I will post some pics of her room in progress.

We are hoping to induce on the 21st. My mother is coming into town this Wednesday to help finish up the room. I had a baby shower in Texas in February which I flew down for so the majority of the gifts are coming with her seeing as I could not carry it all on the plane. My nesting instincs have set in and I am getting a little nervous about things not being finished, but my mom always comes through with flying colors. Rocky has been a great sport and doing whatever I ask him to do, even with how crazy it seems!! We have rearranged every room in this house!! Here is a pic of Laney's crib and one of the belly of course.