What's been going on?

I'm going to go ahead and jump start this blogging thing with a little overview of what's been going on in our lives lately.

We moved away from lovely Southern California in the beginning of July. My hubby, Elias, who is a Marine, is changing duty stations from Cali to North Carolina. The sad part is, he is deploying to Afghanistan some time in July, so I will be living in Houston with friends and family while he is away. He got to stay here for a few weeks, then had to fly out to NC... alone. :(

Here are the last couple of pictures that Alexa took with her daddy. It was at the airport just before he boarded the plane.

I try to be strong but it is really, really rough. I miss him a lot and I hate that not only is he going to be away; he will be overseas in Afghanistan for over seven months. I don't know how we will be able to communicate with him while he's there, if at all. I absolutely hate the unexpected. It scares me.

So, my little BooBear and I have been daddyless for over two weeks now. I'm living with my mom and stepdad for the time being. The living situation drives me batty at times (read: most of the time) but it's rent-free, so I can't complain... Well I can, and I will, but the rent-free part is nice.

My first Mother's Day pretty much sucked ass. I'm not going to lie. I did get a really cute picture from Alexa that my mom made for me. It's Alexa's picture in the middle of a flower with her footprints as the leaves. I seriously want to frame it and cherish it forever!

So, what's new with Alexa? She's been crawling, pulling up, and standing alone for a while now. Still no steps! She's mastered cruising. She is such a busy body and never wants to sit still. She "meows" with the cats and "sings" to music. She's an expert at waving hello and goodbye, and if she's extra enthusiastic she does a double-handed wave. :)

Here are a few huge ones.. She now (drumroll, please)..... Sleeps through the night! Doesn't wake up for feedings or cuddlings anymore! Puts herself to sleep! And is completely weaned from breastfeeding!

Ok, that last one was kind of sad.. but we were both ready and I'm glad I finally took the plunge. Breastfeeding was a long, hard road but I would do it all over again in a heartbeat.

Another sort-of big deal accomplishment for Alexa is that she is doing great on finger foods. She now eats mac & cheese, green beans, whole peas, toast, edamame, carrots (cooked), and cheese.. all with her teeny little hands. I was a total scaredy when it came to giving her "real" food, but she has been doing awesome! We've been trying something new every day.

Here's the big girl eating big girl foods..

Did I mention my little girl is a growler? Yup.. in all my years of working in child care, I never came across a growling baby. And boy, does she growl... all the time. Sometimes she sounds downright possessed. It's crazy. She usually does it when she's happy or excited, or just feels like making noise. I will have to get her on video and share it here. It's the funniest thing!

I think that's pretty much it for now. I'll leave you with a few pictures we had done just before Elias left. :)