3 Years and going Strong!

Today Marks the day of our 3rd Wedding Anniversary! Has it really been 3 years already?! Realistically, 3 years is not that long, but Chad and I have accomplished more than most in our first years of marriage. Since tying the knot we have adopted a dog, I have finished my Associates Degree, Moved, experienced the joys of pregnancy, became parents, moved to Georgia, bought a house, dealt with mini deployments, and just recently celebrated our daughters first birthday. Whew, sounds like a lot for 3 years!

Our first year we just enjoyed being Newlyweds. There were so many exciting "Firsts" that were so fun at the time, First Trip, First Christmas, and even our First time going grocery shopping were great memories!

Shortly after celebrating our 1st Anniversary we found out that we were expecting our First Child! It was definately a very exciting and emotional time. Our second year was spent learning and enjoying watching our little one grow. From Ultrasounds, to picking out burp clothes they were moments I would cherish forever. As we prepared for Addisons Arrival it grew more and more exciting and the nervousness we shared as we knew parenthood was fastly approaching.

Our 3rd year we learned to embrace the facts that we were PARENTS! It was no longer just Chad and myself living a carefree life, we now had a daughter to take care of and we knew that her needs would need to be put above our own. It has been such an exciting and thrilling year! There have been many ups and downs, learning from each others mistakes. We are not perfect parents, but we are trying our best to bring Addison up with the right morals and values. Through the parenting experience we have learned so much about each other. We truly see a different side of each other. There is no greater feeling than seeing your significant other with your child.Around Christmas we also bought our first home in Kingsland, Georgia! It is such a good feeling to actually own our own home!

On our wedding day I never pictured 3 years later I would be a Mother, staying at home to raise our daughter or a homeowner. The past couple of years has been a whirl wind, but I can only hope that it gets even better. I cant wait to see what the future has in store for us.

Taking you back to July 30, 2005 (Sorry these are the only Pictures I have on my computer!)
Always Remember: "Love is Patient, Love is Kind"

Been awhile...

Sorry its been awhile since I have updated our blog. It seems as though Summer is always such a busy time. Ive been so tired and drained lately that I havent even thought about blogging, so Im sorry that it has been a few weeks.
We really havent been doing too much lately. A little of this, and a little of that. Enough to keep us busy. Last week Chads Mom came up and joined us for a few days, and this past weekend April and Nick made a trip up to spend the weekend with us. It was their first time seeing our new home, and we were proud to show it off. We were glad to have some company over the past few weeks. Chad has been working so much lately, that it often gets lonely without him. Lately, he has been getting up at 4:30ish reporting between 5:30-6 and not getting home till close to 8:30. I know it has been so rough and draining on him. Not to mention there are days when Addison is in bed by the time he gets home so he often dosnt get to see her either, and I know that bothers him. He is on what they call "shift work" with NO days off! So today we are on day 8...I think they are estimating another few weeks to go. Oiy Vey. Its gonna be a looong few weeks.
On a good note, Addison is doing very well. She got another tooth the other day, so she now has 4 on top and 2 on the bottom! She has such a personality and is so fun to be around. She is also our little love bug. Her latest thing is hugging everything and everyone in sight. She's been "hugging" us for awhile now, and the dogs. But now she hugs and loves on all her stuffed animals and even her friends! She even hugged and kissed her friend Mackenzie at the pool the other day! I really wish I would of had my camera right then, because it was TOO CUTE!
Now that I have a bunch of time on my hands I hope to update you all more often! But If I dont please dont hold it against me, Addison only lets me do so much!

Movin' On Up!

So Addison and I had a busy day Monday. We needed to head out to the mall to pick up her 1 year pictures we had done and while we were out that way I was going to stop by Babies R' Us and pick her up a new carseat. Since the mall is about 40 minutes away, and it seems as though getting Addison dressed, ready and packed to go anywhere takes a good 30 minutes in its own, I decided to make a day trip out of it. I planned it as a Mother/Daughter "shop till you drop" kinda day (one of many I am sure!). We had such a great time, and Addison did amazing the whole day!Usually how long we stay somewhere depends on her mood, so Im glad she did so well. We first hit Babies R' Us where we picked out her new "Big Girl" carseat! She was finally growing out of her infant carrier so it was time for a new one. With no help from any BRU employees, by myself I had to shove this ginormous box into the trunk of the car, with the travel system back there none the less. What a task, but with many people just gawking at me trying to get this big box into the car, I finally managed to shove it in.
Next we hit the mall. We picked up her pictures first and then headed to the food court for lunch. After lunch we did some shopping, we picked up a few things for everyone in the family. Since Addison was such a trooper, after shopping I bought a ice cream cone to share, and then I took her on the Train Ride they had at the mall. It was just a small little track that went around a few times, but Addison really seemed to enjoy it. The whole time she went "Whoooooo. Whooooooo!" As we were exiting the train conductee asked her if she had fun. Addison only knowing how to shake her head one direction, sweetly shook her head No, and with a huge smile on her face while doing so. Thats my girl. It was then time to pack up and head home.
Once we got home Chad installed her new carseat into the car. Up until now Addison had always been rear facing, but we decided to go ahead and put her forward facing. She really enjoyed riding in the carseat, im sure she thought it was a totally different ride facing in a new direction. And it is so much easier on me to just turn and face her or hand her something. No more reaching over backwards for me (although I mastered that well). She still looks so small in this big ole' bulky carseat, but I need to face it that my little girl is a movin' on up!
Here are a few pictures from Addisons First ride in her new carseat:

A Message From Daddy

First things first I would like to introduce myself since this is the first time I have written on this blog.My name is Chad and I am a happily married man who serves our country in the United States Navy. Well that is my side job anyways. My main job since July,2,2007 is to raise that wonderful little girl you see in the picture with me. Since the Navy takes me away from my family sometimes that job seems really hard to do. I love that little girl so much. She is so funny which i know she gets from me. She is already one year old and she can walk and give that little baby attitude already. She is so smart which once again probably is from me( I love you Ali). As you read in Addison's birthday post we went to Chef Mickeys and had a great time. I am so proud of her and everything she has accomplished up to this point. Most of all I am very proud and appreciative of the job her mom has done so far. She has had to raise Addison these last couple of months without me and has done a great job. So even though i am gone i know she is in good hands. I just hope that in the future i can be there when she needs me and even when she wishes i would just leave her alone because i promise this whatever she does and wherever she goes she will have a hard time keeping her dadda away and too bad if she doesn't like it. Love you Addison you make me so proud


Addison and her Daddy outside Chef Mickey's

This calls for a celebration!

As most of you know, Chad, Addison and I headed to Clermont last week to celebrate Addisons 1st Birthday! It was such an amazing and exciting milestone for us all. Not only were we celebrating her birthday, but we were also recognizing the fact that Chad and I survived our first year of parenthood! I knew we had it in us :) Although I have to admit it will probably be the easiest year, I think its pretty safe to say it only gets harder from here on out. Before we know it she will be talking (which we all know means back talking) and reaching the terrible two's...Oh My! So much to look forward too.

For Addisons Birthday I wanted to do something fun and exciting. Something we would enjoy as a family. I decided that I wanted to take Addison to Chef Mickeys (located on Disney property) for her "birthday brunch". For those who dont know what Chef Mickeys is about, it a casual breakfast/brunch area where the main Disney characters come around one at a time to every table and greet every guest. I figured I could incorporate Addison's two favorite things, her love of music and fun and Food! What could be more exciting than Mickey and Food?! (Ha, we all know Addison has a love for food!).

Shortly after we were seated and enjoying our food there was an announcment that Mickey would be soon having a special celebration. Within a few minutes Mickey brought Addison a little birthday cupcake while everyone was singing and dancing around us. Addison had no clue what was going on! But it was nice of them to acknowledge her special day. Later Mickey, Goofy, Donald, Minnie and Pluto all made rounds to our table (although we missed Pluto due to a bathroom break). From a far, Addison would get so excited to see one of the characters. She would wave and bounce up and down. But as soon as they got too close she got a bit scared, but who can blame her? I think I would be scared if a massive mouse came right up in my face too. As a matter of fact I recall being afraid of Goofy until I was 11. Our families took bets on whether she would cry, but I knew my daughter all too well, I knew she wouldnt cry. Here are a few pictures from our morning at Chef Mickeys:Addisons First picture with Mickey while he brought her a cupcake. At first I was surprised at how well she did, she even honked his nose!

However, the excitement soon faded when Mickey tried to touch her. This isnt a great picture of me, but Addison literally jumped across the table and almost out of my arms when he reached for her! I have never seen her jump so high. It is soo much funnier to watch on the video camera!

Like Mother, Like Daughter: See Im not the only one scared of Goofy!

After breakfast we went to Chads Moms work (who works at one of the Disney resorts) to show her off. Before we knew it we had a mob of people crowded over her cooing at her telling us how adorable she is. Thats when the proud Momma in me kicks in. I love showing off my little girl. I figure I might as well go ahead and throw this in. Since birth Everyone has always commented on how much she looks like Chad. That is great and dandy. I dont mind, I have a beautiful daughter. But since she was little I always seem to get the SAME comment "She is Sooo Beautiful! She looks just like her Daddy!" and my personnel favorite, "She is too cute! She looks nothing like you!" Umm...thanks...I think?? What are they trying to imply? Quite a self esteem booster if you ask me.

A family picture at Chads Moms Resort. Family pictures seem to be few and hard to come by these days.

Later that night we had a small party with both of our families combined. We grilled some hotdogs, had some nice watermelon and enjoyed the typical summer night. When we ordered Addisons Birthday cake we got a FREE "smash cake" for Addison. The first birthday tradition is to give the child their own little cake and let them eat as much as they like and make the biggest mess possible. I on the other hand only wanted to give Addison a small piece ( I am such a strict Momma arent I?). After being persuaded I finally gave in and decided to just let Addison "Dig in" so to speak. I pictured Addison going in with both hands and just shoving it into her face, after all that is what she usually does at dinner every night anyway, so I figured this wouldnt be much different.

But Addison surprised us all when she had more fun making a mess than eating it. She only had maybe 2 or 3 bites and she was done. I think by that point she was over it, after all she had had a busy day. Often times Addison likes to share her food feed me while she eats. After I picked her up, she proceeded to take the the chunk of cake she had in her hand and put it in my mouth. Thanks Hun! I soon became more of a mess than she was. We had such a great time while we were home, but we were more than ready to get back home and in the swing of things. Addison had her 12 months WBV on Monday and she is now 18lbs 6oz and 29" long. The Doctor said she looks great and seems to be ahead developmentally (but we have always known she was a genius baby!). We cant wait to see what the next year has in store for us. I can only hope it will be as great as our first!