Overnight to Pensacola

Joe and I were blessed with my parents being in town and able to watch Georgia for us while we went to Pensacola for the night. Thank you also to Grandma for the Christmas money which we used towards the Bed and Breakfast we stayed at and to the Bernardoni's who gave us gift certificates to the places we ate at.

It was the first time Joe and I left Georgia overnight. It was a great time for us and Georgia did great as well. We went to the Fish House for dinner and the Melting Pot for dessert.

Shrimp a Ya Ya, yum!

The fish special of the night with vanilla bean foam. The description the waiter gave sounded straight from Top Chef.

3 1/2 great years together!

The B & B we stayed at had a tandem bike. It was a lot harder to maneuver than you would think. We about crashed when we first got on it. The back handlebars don't move, they are simply something to hang on to and the pedals are connected. It was fun riding around the historic area.

They upgraded our room and it had a jacuzzi tub in it!

The balcony off of our room

The house was beautifully decorated for Christmas. This picture doesn't do the center piece on the tables justice. It was really pretty.

Working Out With Daddy

Joe is back safe and sound from his deployment. We've been enjoying having him home and doing fun things together. Joe has been waiting to be able to incorporate Georgia into his workouts. Well, he's now been able to. :)

I love the look on Georgia's face. She'e loving it just as much as he is.

Pull ups with 15 extra pounds.

We went running one day and it was only in the low 40s outside. This is how we bundled Georgia up. She didn't seem to mind all of the layers.

Christmas party

Saturday was the Navs Christmas Party at the Boathouse Landing. 23 of us gathered for dinner and a fun time of White Elephant gift exchange. We made out with good loot. I got a dustbuster size wet/dry vac. Granted it was only $10 and an off brand and I haven't tried it out yet, but it has good potential. :) Georgia was the bell of the ball. Everyone was gushing over how cute she was in her outfit. And cute she was! They also were taking lots of pictures of her. I almost wanted to start charging for people to use her in their shots. :) But you can see for yourself below why she was so irresistible.

Georgia is 4 months old

Georgia is now 4 months old! It has been so fun much to continue to watch her grow and learn new things. She now laughs, sits up well with minimal assistance, reaches for toys, puts everything in her mouth, rolls over from her back to her stomach, responds to voices, 'talks' up a storm herself. She is now almost 15 lbs. and 24 1/2 inches. Her eyes are still blue, but her hair continues to change color from a blond to brownish color. She is such a sweet baby.

KY/OH Thanksgiving Trip

For Thanksgiving Georgia and I flew up to KY/OH to spend time with friends and family. We had a great time and got to see lots of people! Georgia has now flown twice and been to four states. Not a bad start towards all 50 states. :) She did really well flying and all of the traveling overall. She loves being with people, so she was in her element with lots of attention from grandparents, cousins, Aunt, Uncles and friends.

Aunt Katie enjoying the time with her niece

Joe's cousin Carrie had a little baby boy, Jake, 3 weeks after Georgia was born. We got to meet him for the first time. Jake was about 4 weeks early, which is why even though they are only about 3 weeks apart there is such a big size difference.

Jake and Georgia

We enjoyed getting to see Uncle Tom and meet his girlfriend, Issa.

Georgia had her first Thanksgiving

Nana LOVED all the time she got to spend with her granddaughter and Georgia enjoyed the time too

Poppy was able to steal her away at times :)

For a few days we went up to OH to visit with my side of the family. My grandma and Aunt and Uncle live up in Dayton, about an hour north of where Joe's parents live. It's been nice getting to see them more often. This trip my grandma got to meet her great-granddaughter for the first time. It was a special time.
Also while up in Dayton we were able to visit our good friends, Sarah and Brandon Bernardoni. They also met Georgia for the first time. It was really good getting to see them, but also sad because we miss them here in FL!

Georgia Rolls Over

Today Georgia rolled over for the 1st time. She had been rolling up on her side for a few weeks now, but today was the day. I was hoping she might 'wait' until Joe got home so he could perhaps be the first one to see her do it. I'm glad I caught it on camera. You can tell I caught it right in the moment because all of a sudden I start screaming. Hey, I'm a proud first time mom. :)

Bumbo

Georgia has started being able to sit up with minimal assistance. To give her some variation on her view of the world/our living room, I've started letting her sit in the Bumbo seat. She seems to enjoy it.

3 months old!

Georgia is now 3 months old! I'm not exactly sure how big she is now, but I would guess around 13 lbs. and 24 inches. Looking at pictures from the last month she has grown a lot. Friends here have recently mentioned her seeming bigger, too. This last week she laughed for the first time when I was playing with her! She is holding her head up well, is sleeping through the night and has established a good routine. She enjoys playing with these rings I have hung up on her play mat and car seat. It is such a joy to watch her grow and discover new things.

Trying out the jogging stroller for the first time. She seems to really enjoy it.

Georgia is such a happy baby. I love seeing her smile and hearing her talk.

Happy Halloween

The theme for this years Halloween Party was board games. Georgia and I went from the game 'Settlers of Catan'. I was a settler and she was my resource, a sheep. :)

Jacobe and Andrea Kendrick hosted the party this year. They dressed as the characters from 'Where's Waldo?"

Steph came as dice, a play on her last name, Dyess. Katrina, who was in town visiting me, came as the robber in 'Settlers'.

Scott won for best costume. He came as the game 'Operation'. His costume actually buzzed when you tried to get the pieces of candy out. I was quite impressed.

We played lots of fun game, including a variation on charades.

Elliott and Georgia

Our good friends, Kelly and Sarah Jones, were pregnant at the same time we were. It was really great to go through pregnancy with Sarah. We had the same doctor and delivered at the same hospital. They had a little boy, Elliott Todd, who was born exactly two weeks after Georgia on our anniversary. These pictures are take a couple of weeks after Elliott was born.

The Best Thing About Being a Mom

One of the best things about being a Mom is when Georgia smiles at me. When she smiles at me first before I even smile at her. When she smiles because she knows I'm her Mommy and she loves me. It's the purest, unadulterated kind of smile and love. It makes my heart melt every time. Seeing those smiles makes all of the hard times, inconveniences and loss of freedom worth it. The love she has for me is the same that God has for me. There are no strings attached, it's the best kind. And God's heart melts when I respond in love to him before he ever 'smiles' at me first. I don't know how often I actually do that and I'm sure God's heart aches for me to respond to him out of pure, unadulterated love more often. It's amazing how many parallels I have come to see between being a parent/having a baby and my relationship with God. I'm sure that's why God decided to give us children, so that we can know him more intimately and understand our relationship with him better.

Uncle Joshua and Uncle Daniel Visit

This weekend my brothers had fall break and came to visit. It was the first time Daniel got to meet Georgia. All of our siblings have now gotten to see her. I'm enjoying the 3 of us all living in the SE and being able to spend time together a little more frequently.

Uncle Daniel and Georgia (This is the first time Georgia smiled in a picture with someone holding her.)

Mommy and daughter

Uncle Joshua and Georgia - she is starting to have good head control, I've started sitting her up on the couch

Joshua's birthday is on the 26th and since we were together decided to celebrate early.