Beach Baby

I know, I know...you are probably wondering what in the world happened to us. You may haven even forgotten about this little blog. Well, to be perfectly honest, so did I. I guess that is just what happens when you have a full time job and a little girl with more energy than a Mexican jumping bean. The truth is that most of the time when Im writing on here it is either the middle of the night or a rare nap time. Those times are becoming harder and harder to come by now that Alexis is fully mobile. I am happy to report to you that we are better than ever and enjoying our summer. Alexis has mastered so much in these past couple of months. She now says "Momma AND "Da Da," in her husky little voice, swims in her pool and walks holding onto just about anything she can reach. My, how the time has flown. We even got to share a very special week in the Outer Banks with my parents and grandparents. Alexis was not one bit afraid of the big ocean. I guess I shouldn't be surprised considering I have yet to find ANYTHING she is afraid of. She had a ball swimming in the pool and got spoiled rotten by all of her relatives. I will admit that taking a baby to the beach is a very exhausting task. Not only do you have to remember all of the normal baby necessities, but now you must add floaties, towels, swim diapers and pool snacks. And this time if you forget something you have to hike through sand to get it. Oh, and there is always that looming threat of a sunburn on that precious little baby skin. I felt like all I did was apply and reapply baby sunblock while trying to keep her from yanking her sunhat off of her head. Seriously, though if you are considering taking your baby to the beach, take my advice...make tons of lists, stock up on water baby sunblock and GO because it is so worth it!! There isn't a better place in the world to have fun and make memories. <3 <3

Very First Mother's Day

Yesterday I celebrated a very important milestone…my very first Mother’s Day! I thought it would feel like my birthday…You know, a day to relax and do what I wanted. I thought I would get a little present from Alexis that I could show off and I would get to thank everybody for wishing me a Happy Mother’s Day at church and anywhere else I went. I looked at it as a day of admiration and appreciation for mothers everywhere. After all, that is what it was for my Mother and all of the other Mothers I ever knew. Perhaps most importantly, on this Mother’s Day I was finally in “The Mommy Club.” I was going to be part of the special group of people to which the day is dedicated.
Well I was very surprised to find that this was not at all what Mothers Day turned out to be for me. While I did get a very special gift from Alexis and everyone did wish me a “happy Mother’s Day,” I felt like on this day, more than any other day, I was the one who was appreciative. I felt so lucky to be able to celebrate this day with my baby. I just felt so thankful to God for giving me such a special gift in my life. I thought all day about the journey that I had taken that led me to being a mother. From caring for my baby dolls as a little girl to all of the life experiences I’ve had as a young adult... all of these things must have made me into just the right person to be Alexis’ mommy. I am the person who was chosen to get to share my life with her and to help make hers as wonderful as possible. If I never do anything else noteworthy the rest of my life, I will be absolutely fine with that because this experience is better than anything I can imagine and more than enough for me.
My Mom is a very emotional person but for some reason I always remembered her crying when she opened her Mother’s Day cards from me and my sister more than any other occasion throughout our lives. Maybe now I understand why. Maybe she feels the exact same way that I do about this special day. As it turns out, being in “The Mommy Club,” is just as great as I thought it would be…but for an entirely different reason. <3

Alexis Aimee at her baptism 05.02.2010

It's a girl thing...

Last weekend it really hit me…I am so happy to have a little GIRL. No offense to all of the boy mommies, but I just happen to love anything and everything that goes along with my little girl and so far, last Saturday took the cake. It had a lot in common with most of my favorite days with Alexis; the day off to do what we wanted, shopping, lattes, dinner out…except this day was even more special. This was Alexis’ baptism dress day! (the baby equivalent to her wedding dress day) My best friend, Bobbi Jean, and I took her to Strasburg Children’s store in PA. Trust me when I tell you that walking into this store was like walking into a storybook. The clothes were beautiful, each one with more ruffles and lace than the next and I was loving it. Alexis wasn’t too sure about the colorful clothes or the lady making baby talk to her from behind the counter, but soon she sensed that this was all about her and she changed her mood rather quickly. The sales woman informed me of which dresses were “age appropriate” for a seven month old and before I knew it we were whisked into a dressing room to try out our options. That’s right, Alexis had her very own dressing room complete with a full length mirror. I was sweating the whole time we were putting the dress on her, just praying she didn’t decide that now would be a good time to spit up those pears she had just eaten! Thankfully this did not happen and we were able to choose the most beautiful little white, T-length dress with pearls embroidered on the top. Then for the bonnet….and then the shoes…and then the socks! I hadn’t counted on all of these necessary accessories to go along with the dress! Finally, she had a complete outfit and we could all ooo and ahhh at how sweet she looked. She giggled and “talked” to herself in the mirror before grabbing a handful of the dress and shoving it into her little mouth. Needless to say, the dress came off at that point and went straight into a garment bag to stay safe until the big day. Maybe it was the significance of the dress or maybe I was caught up in the moment but I felt like I would remember that day forever. Some day when I am looking at her in her wedding dress I will be remembering her in her little white bonnet cooing at herself in the mirror.

After her baptism on Sunday I will be posting pictures of Alexis in her sweet little dress...after all, it has to be a surprise for the big day! :) She cannot wait to see her Bobbie and Papa coming all the way from North Carolina and has MANY new tricks to perform for them. We are so grateful to get to share such a special occasion with our family, her Godparents Bobbi and Jeff and our church.
Happy Baptism Baby Alexis Aimee <3

Time with Friends

Last weekend Alexis and I had the pleasure of visiting all of our friends at Danielle and Kent's housewarming party! It couldn't have been a better time complete with good friends and zero crying on Alexis' part. I couldn't ask for more. The food was delish and there was plenty of it. Enough that Alexis got to test the icing on a few of the yummy lemon blueberry cupcakes. I told Danielle that one little taste wouldn't hurt but I have a feeling she snuck a few extra in while I wasn't looking. ;) They almost got away with it until I saw a suspicious white ring around Alexis' mouth. I am afraid Danielle has a friend for life now. I had been getting weekly updates on which part of the house was being built and what was being added when, so it was so great to get to see the finished product! Danielle, Kent and Lil' Oden's new home is just beautiful!


"Yummmmmmmmmm Yummmmmmmmmmm"



"What icing?"

Sleeping Like a Baby

Hello alone time...I forgot what you felt like. Heck, I forgot you even existed! My baby has gone to bed at a somewhat normal bedtime( 8:30) for the second night in a row. We might be on to something here. I have to say, I've gotten so used to having her attached to me every second of every day that I feel very strange with this newfound alone time. After all, I have it all figured out...how to hold her while I brush my teeth, how to wash the hair on one side of my head while watching her out of my other eye, and even how to butter my toast while holding her with one hand and keeping the binky from falling out of her mouth with my chin. Pretty much anthing that I once did with two hands, I can now do with one. It might seem like a scary thought, having a little person with you every second of every day, but I just can't get enough of her. I really can't imagine my life any other way. That is why all of this has caught me a little off gaurd. I had all but given up on her sleeping in her crib but when she fell asleep early last night, I thought "Why not? It couldn't hurt to try!" So, I snuggled her in, and wouldn't you know it? She actually slept! For more than two minutes! I tip toed downstairs, turned on the monitor, sat down on the couch and then thought....now what?? It was the strangest feeling. It was like something was just out of place. Then I had to tell myself that this was a good thing and a tiny glimpse into our future. I guess this is her starting to get older, and as she does she will begin to need me less and less. Im not sad...sniffle sniffle...really! I was able to distract myself with a hot bath and a good book. Tonight, it's a little reality TV. I'm sure that tonight, just like last night, she will wake up in the middle of the night and end up back in bed with me. Looks like she isn't too much of a big girl for her Mum Mum yet. :)

Spring Fever

Greetings from West Virginia...or is this Florida?? I can't tell because the weather here has been uncharacteristically BEAUTIFUL this week! Alexis and I have gone on a walk and played on her new swing almost every night. We even had our first trip to the D double C (that is Dairy Creme Corner for all of you outsiders) on Monday night! I got my usual swirl with sprinkles and Alexis had a few bites. She loved it, of course. What can I say? If you are a member of our family you can live on sweets alone. It's in our blood. Looks like my beloved nightly hot chocolate will be replaced with ice cream during these warmer months....Now that I have written about how excited all of this has made me we will probably be walloped by a huge mid April snow storm. Good thing I don't believe in jinxing!

Alexis surprised me the other evening by finding a purpose for that one little tooth that popped through her bottom gums. I walked in the door from work and picked her up to hug her when she promptly turned herself sideways, grabbed my arm with her chubby little hands and bit down on my bare skin as hard as she could. She then pulled away to look at what she had done and giggled! I was in shock! Where did this come from? My little angel had committed her first act of naughtiness! I tried to tell myself that it was cute and that she must be a genius baby for realizing what she could do with her new little tooth....but then reality set in and I had visions of my baby being labeled a "biter" in play group. So, I used my mommy skills to divert her new found talent to her binky and not my arm and was successful. I am happy to report we have not had another biting episode since.

Hello Out There

Hello out there and happy spring everybody! I'm Jessica. I recently decided, after much Facebook frustation, that there had to be a better, less annoying way to share news and pictures with family and friends....You know, without a million little applications popping up about buying farm animals or giving your friend a "gift" for their profile. I really don't understand all of that and quite frankly I find it a bit creepy. So, when my good friend Danielle mentioned starting a blog I thought it was a great idea to stay connected about the things that are important and not so much about every time I switch my outfit ;)

Ok, so now I have a blog. That was easy! Oh wait...I have to name the thing?? I must say, I was not prepared for this. Well I want this blog to be about my life. It was pretty ordinary until one special little person came along. Her name is Alexis Aimee and she is my daughter. She was born on 09.19.09 (whats the deal with the 9's?) and she has made my life anything but ordinary. Every day with her is more entertaining than the last. She is my Lexi and I am her Mum Mum and this will be about our adventures....my life with Lexi.