Sitting alone at 7 months

Last weekend I noticed that Madeline wasn't needing so much support while sitting up and this weekend I confirmed that she does, in fact, sit unassisted! Hooray!



Here is a picture of a headband we will be modifying for Halloween. I had to see if it fit (it does) but it looks so funny on I had to take a picture:





At a follow up appointment today, Maddie weighed 14 lbs 11 oz, nearly one pound gained in a month! Last month she was diagnosed with reflux and has been put on Zantac. It seems to be helping. Her feedings have improved 100% and she now seems interested in solids and is sleeping better.

Check out the princess bib, on the tag it said, "Perfect for any meal-time adventure!" Too funny!

Happy Birthday to me!

Look! A picture of me! How did that happen?

Today was my birthday! I started off by sleeping in, Ainsley then made homemade french toast for breakfast and I then proceeded to spend the next few hours on the phone with all my fans ;)

Before we finally ventured out to enjoy the beautiful weather, we were sidetracked. Ainsley had planned on making my favorite carrot cake today, but when he went to double check the recipe, we couldn't find it! We spent a good 45 minutes tearing the house apart looking for that thing and never found it! So, alas, we had to go with a different recipe, sigh.

Went to the park, had Chili's for dinner (yes, there is a Chili's here on base, it's bizarre) and then home for cake and presents.

As we were putting the boys to bed, guess what we found on Joshie's pillow? The recipe for the carrot cake! What it was doing there, we'll never know but at least we found it!

My good friend Amy celebrated my birthday, too, by giving birth to a baby boy! What a lucky kid, he has the coolest birthday ever!

Madeline, 6 mos old

Today Madeline had her 6 month appointment and she's still a little peanut. She weighed 13 lbs 13.5 oz and measured 25.5 inches long. That is the 10th percentile for weight and the 25th for height! At the same age, Mommy weighed 13 lbs 4 oz, so we know she is at least a little bit like Mommy. There are two suspicious bumps on her bottom gums and the doctor seems to think that Madeline's first teeth will be here sooner rather than later.

Pimp our Rides!

A lot of people are inspired here by the temporary nature of the assignment and choose to get "kimchi" cars, or beaters. The choicest vehicles are about $1500.

One car that we never thought we would own is a minivan. This lovely car comes pre-dented so you don't have to worry about driving the crazy Korean roads. We like to think of it as our "badge of courage." Other cars see this damage and know that we don't mess around. It's very freeing. Also makes parking a complete joy! We're never afraid to park too close! And worrying about pesky door dings is a thing of the past! This van comes with air conditioning that actually works, which is a plus since the driver's side window won't roll down on occasion. Oh, and the transmission is questionable at best. Did I forget to mention the leaky side door?







Another car that we NEVER thought we would own is a Ssayong Korando. It's sorta like a Jeep Cherokee, except NEVER that nice. The plush interior is all that protects Ainsley from the rusted through holes exposing him to the elements. It's a manual, has no air conditioning and smells like fuel. It's newest feature is a fully removable driver's seat. The bolts attaching it to the floor have also rusted through so it's not longer actually attached to the frame of the car. All this for only $600! Good thing it's only a 5 minute drive to base!
























Place your bets now as to whose car will still be running at the end of our assignment!

Open House

Andrew had open house this week at school. Everything is pint sized, it's really cute. Here is a picture of Andrew at his desk:

We're already embarrassing the poor kid, it's awesome!

Josh counting to 100...

Here is a picture of the playground just for kindergartners:

Andrew seems to be doing really well. He loves eating in the cafeteria and is nice and tired at the end of the day!

Joshie turns 4!

The prayer we say before dinner is one the boys learned at preschool in Niceville. It goes:

God is great,
God is good,
Let us thank him for our food.

By His hands, we are fed,
Thank you, Lord, for daily bread. Amen.



Last night, Andrew wanted to say a special blessing about his first day at Kindergarten, it was very sweet. Then, Josh said he had a special blessing he wanted to share. It went like this:

God is great, God is good,
Let us thank him for my cake.

By His hands,
Please don't touch my cake,
Thank you, Lord, for cake. Amen.

He came up with that one all on his own! Today for his special day, Daddy stayed home from work and we did all the things Josh likes to do: went to the library, out to lunch, bowling, and to the swimming pool! Then, when Andrew came home, we opened presents, had his favorite dinner and birthday cake!

Andrew's First Day of Kindergarten

Andrew had a great first day of school. Mommy walked him to the bus stop in the rain for his 7:25am pick up. He was totally prepared and did fine. Mommy on the other hand got all teary eyed as the bus pulled away! Where has our baby gone?!

The entire family met his bus at 3pm, eager to hear about his day. He said it was great. His favorite part was eating lunch in the cafeteria. Today he also had PE and Spanish. We think he may have even taken a nap at rest time. He says it was only five minutes, but we know that nap time is 45 minutes long, so who knows!