Randomness. . .

Not much has been going on with us these past couple weeks so I've not had a whole to write about. The only thing new would be Rylee eating her first foods. She started eating a combo of cereal, fruit, and formula. Let me tell you she loves her fruit!! She gulped it down in record time. Other than that I'm just counting down the days till I have to go back to work and trying to treasure what little time I have left with her.

Well, not a whole to talk about so I'll leave you with some cute pictures.

Father's Day

So, being that today is Father's Day I thought I would give a little shout out to my two favorite Daddy's. . . mine and Rylee's. Chris is a wonderful daddy already and Rylee has for sure got him wrapped around her finger and i'm sure it's only going to get worse the older she gets!

As for my dad I just want to make sure he knows just how grateful I am that he's my dad. I thank God constantly for him and for the role that he played in my upbringing. I am so thankful that he cared enough to take me to church every sunday. He has taught me so much and for that I am forever grateful. I love you Dad, Happy Father's Day!!

More pictures from Indiana Visit

Rylee and her cousin Macy Rylee and her Mammy and Pappy Alderson (mommy's grandparents)

Rylee asleep in her Pappy's arms

L to R: Mommaw holding Rylee, cousin Landon, and Poppaw holding cousin Grant

Landon, Rylee, and Grant. . . I think this equation will someday equal trouble!!

Fun Times with Family and Friends

Rylee with Great Grandma and Grandad Worth

Rylee with her cousin Kacey

Rylee with her cousin Jenae

Rylee with her cousin Kindra

5 GENERATIONS (L to R)-Pappy, Great Grandma Eleanor holding Rylee, Great Great Granny (Clara Agan-who is about to turn 96 in July), & Daddy

We just got back last week from Rylee's first trip home to Indiana. We had a great time visiting and spending time with everybody. Rylee did really good on the ride there. It was a 17 hour drive!!!!! It was a crazy 10 days, but we loved every minute of it and hated to leave everybody. While we were there Rylee started sleeping through night!!!!!!!!!! It was kinda scary though the first time she did it. She went to bed around 9:30 that night and didn't wake up till 4:30 that morning! When she first woke up I had no idea what time it was, but had woke Chris up with the promise that if he got up with her this time I'd get up with her for her 4 o'clock bottle (she usually eats every 4 hours). Chris got up with her but she was extremely fussy and wouldn't settle down. I could hear her screaming so I got up to see what was going on only to realize it was 4 in the morning and that nothing was wrong with her she was just EXTREMELY hungry and getting more impatient by the minute as Chris and I tried to figure out why she was screaming. . . hahaha!

While it might've been a crazy 10 days it was alot of fun and also kind of bittersweet. I've always missed being back in Indiana with our family and friends but never as much as what I do now that I've had Rylee. I didn't just hate to leave it actually broke my heart. I hated taking Rylee away from family that cares so much about her but rarely gets to see her. Thankfully we'll be back in just 2 short years and in between then we'll be back as much as we possibly can for visits. But for those of you who are close to home or close to family don't take any day you have with them for granted!

The Cheeseburger Story

I just have to share this funny story with everyone. It was so cute! So on our way back from Indiana we stopped at Hardees so Chris and I could grab a bite to eat and also so Rylee could take her bottle. So we go through the drive thru and then pull around and park in the parking lot. Since Chris was driving he was going to eat while I fed Rylee. I get Rylee out of her carseat and bring her around to the front so I can sit and feed her. She's just started eating when Chris pulls out his cheeseburger and starts eating. Oh my gosh I have never seen someone turn their head so fast. . . Rylee must've smelled daddy's cheeseburger and thought that would be better than her bottle because she did a complete 180 in my arms all the while keeping the bottle in her mouth!!! She just stared at him the entire time he was eating that cheeseburger. I couldn't get her to take her eyes away from him and that sandwich! So then to be mean Chris waves the sandwich in front of her face. . . hahaha! I'm pretty sure Chris and I neither one have ever laughed so hard in our lives. If I could've taken a picture of her watching him with that sandwich I swear we could've won some award or something it was just so darn cute!!

Mini Milestones

I can not believe I'm still up at 12:30 at night!!! Rylee took a 5 hour nap from 6-11 so she has decided she's not tired now even though I'm exhausted bc she woke up at 5am and decided to stay up!! Although I can't complain to much because she was absolutely adorable. . . she just talked up a storm!! Ok so it's late and i'm rambling and not getting to the whole point of why I'm on here this late. Yesterday Rylee was on her belly on a blanket on the living room floor. I was in the kitchen (most likely washing bottles. . . story of my life) when Chris yelled at me to come to the living room. There was my little sumo wrestler doing push ups!! She had pushed her chest up off the floor using her arms!! It was so cute! I think she was proud of herself too because she had a big smile on her face as she was doing it. So of course when I looked at the "milestone chart" that I get in my weekly baby emails it says that if she's able to do that already she's "advanced"!!! Yay!! I foresee a Harvard graduate. . . She is just changing so much and so fast! I didn't think she was supposed to be changing quite this fast. She's only 6 weeks and I found myself going through her clothes the other day and actually putting the clothes that didn't fit anymore in a tote! Okay now I know that this is happening way too fast! Not only that but daddy had to adjust her car seat straps AGAIN!! This time though we had to actually take the straps out of the bottom slots and lace them through the top ones. I knew it was time for this when I tried to put her in there the other day and was actually having to push her down in the seat to be able to get the straps over her shoulders!! Ok, well I think my little monster has finally passed out so I'm headed to do the same. GOODNIGHT!

Busy Weekend

This picture is so funny. If you look at her left hand she's got her finger pointed and it looks like she was giving somebody a stern talking to!! hahaha

This was what she wore to her first ever church outing. She looked absolutely adorable.

This is just a random picture I took. Sometimes she just acts so happy and is talking up a storm that I can't help but try to capture the moment.

This of course was another one of those moments. She just looked so peaceful I couldn't help myself.

This weekend was Rylee's first cookout/get together. Some old friends of ours from Chris's old ship invited us over for a cookout Saturday night. It was alot of fun. We saw a few people that we haven't seen since Chris left the ship almost two years ago. It was nice to catch up and see what has happened in everyone's lives since we last saw them. One of the guys is now married with an adorable 9 month old little boy who kept everyone entertained throughout the evening. The couple that was hosting the cookout are old friends of ours that actually used to live in the same apartments as we do now. They made the decision to move out just shortly before Lloyd shipped out for a 6 month deployment. His wife Brooke moved home to North Carolina while he was gone. Upon his return they moved into a new apartment at a different location.

Sunday we made our first trip to church as a family. It was so nice to be back in church again. I've definitely missed the "connection" to the Lord I feel when there. I was so miserable throughout my pregnancy that I just didn't feel like going anywhere or doing anything. Then with the arrival of Rylee brought about many sleepless nights and I just didn't have the energy. Now that we're adjusting and she's sleeping a little better I felt this was as good a time as any to make our first trip to church. Rylee stayed in the sanctuary with us through the service. Daddy was too nervous to let her stay in the nursery with "strangers"(hahaha). It was kind of weird because the preachers son and daughter-in-law had just had a baby no to long ago and were there for a dedication service. It was super sweet. They showed a little slide show of pictures of the baby while the family was all gathering on the stage. Of course it brought back precious memories for me of Rylee's birth and just gave me a minute to reflect on the weeks since then and just how happy I am to have such a beautiful little girl. She definitely filled a void in our lives that we never knew we had till she came along. And yes you guessed it. . . I cried like a big baby. I'm sure the people around me were wondering what the heck I was crying about. But hey I wasn't the only one crying. . . the proud grandpa (our preacher) was crying too (hahaha)!! Goodness the way I was acting you would've thought I was part of their family or something!!!

So all this brings up another topic that's really weighing on our little family at the moment. Since Chris has been off the ship due to his shoulder problems he has been on limited duty. Well to keep it simple (because nothing with the Navy is ever simple) the Navy only allows you to be on limited duty for so long. Well Chris has EXCEEDED his limit so now some "big wigs" in Washington are in the process of deciding his fate with the Navy and in turn mine and Rylee's fate as well because wherever he goes we go. A couple of things can happen now. . . "they" can decide to find him fit for full duty or they can decide to separate/discharge him. If they find him fit for full duty he will be picking orders to a new ship. This could mean a number of things. . .if he's able to get on a ship here then this is where'd we'd stay. If not here then we'll be relocated to wherever his new ship would be. This also means that he could be "deployed" really really soon depending on the ship he gets on schedule. If he is separated or discharged then we would be moving home!!! YAY!! Well kinda YAY. . . we would be moving to a place where we have no home (at least not one of our own) and no jobs in an economy that's not real job friendly at the moment. He should be finding out what they decided any day now. In the mean time we're also waiting to hear if he made 2nd class. Which won't really matter if he did or not if he gets separated. . . kinda weird timing. Anyway, please pray for us! We know God has a plan for our family and that no matter what that is or where it takes us He'll make sure we're taken care of. But we want so bad to be home where Rylee can grow up around family and in the same small town atmosphere we did. Not this big city where kids get shot while riding their bicycles and schools lock down on a weekly basis due to drug busts or gun threats!!!

On a more positive note. . . I'm testing my baking skills today. I am going to attempt to make a milky way cake. This is huge for me because I've never made anything from scratch in my life. If it doesn't come in a box I don't make it! Be sure to tune in later to see how it turned out!

4 DAYS. . . INDIANA HERE WE COME!!!