Beach!

We were fortunate enough to be able to take Cambria to the beach for the first time and spend an entire week in a beachfront house in the Outer Banks. We had a FABULOUS time and we will always remember our first family vacation to the beach.

Here is how we spent much of our time at the beach....

Looking at the beautiful view off of the deck.

Sleeping in late and waking up to lots of snuggle time!
Continuing to snuggle while watching the beautiful sunset and sunrise from the deck.
Spending lots of time putting our toes in the sand and enjoying the beach.
And even spending some time relaxing in the pool (which Cami loved after warming up to it).

We can't wait to go back again next summer!

Catching Up

I obviously have A LOT of catching up to do on my blog. It has been almost 3 weeks since I've last posted and LOTS has happened!!

Cami was sick with one thing after another for an entire month and I am proud to announce that she is finally over everything and is back to her happy, healthy, growing self.

We went to the beach for an entire week to a gorgeous house right on the water and had a blast. It was so special to take Cami for the first time, put her toes in the sand and water and most importantly, RELAX and live the slow beach life.

Cami has somehow turned another month old now making her 8 months old! I still am amazed each time a new month birthday comes along because it just doesn't seem possible.

I know that was such a quick update, but I promise to post more in depth posts in regards to each of the things I mentioned above either today or tomorrow, so stay tuned!! Just wanted to let everyone know we're still alive, well and enjoying every day with our beautiful baby girl!

A Shopper in Training

Cami has officially been upgraded to 'big girl' status and she no longer stays in her infant carseat when we go grocery shopping. She is MUCH happier to sit in the front of the shopping cart and be able to look around at all of the action going on. She especially enjoys when people talk to her and she will kick her feet and get this little grin on her face as if she's thinking, "I'm know I'm cute and that's why people are talking to me". Mommy has also realized that riding in the shopping cart tires Cami out WAY more than her laying in her infant seat as we shop, so this benefits all parties involved.

All in all, Cami is a little shopper in training. She intently watches every item that Mommy picks up off of the shelves (and she would inspect every item too way more closely if I would hand them each to her). She is always (okay, ALMOST always) content and happy when we're in the grocery store.

My favorite part of grocery shopping with Cami though is her love for the receipt. I know it sounds silly, but if you know me, you know I am big into checking my receipts and making sure I got all of the deals I was supposed to (I blame this on working as a cashier in a grocery store for years in high school and college). I absolutely LOVE that after the cashier hands me the receipt my daughter immediately reaches for it and looks at it so intensely as though she too is helping Mommy to check to make sure we weren't overcharged. It's almost as though she knows that Mommy and Daddy must save EVERY penny possible to give her all of the things she wants/needs in life.

Way to go Cami - keep helping Mommy and Daddy save those pennies so you can go to college someday and not to have pay for ANY of it yourself!

First Visit to Virginia Tech!!!

This post is a few weeks late but I could not possibly let this go by without blogging about it. Two weeks ago little Cambria had her very first visit to Virginia Tech for her Aunt Brittany's graduation. Jon and I were THRILLED to have her down in the 'burg where we spent 4 years together having the time of our lives. We had a GREAT weekend and here are some pictures to show how busy Cami's weekend in Blacksburg really was!

The weekend started off with lunch out for sushi!

We played LOTS of dress up! (Cami is definitely her Aunt B's real life baby doll.)


The graduate and her goddaughter getting ready on graduation morning.

Cami a little unsure about the itchy grass outside of Burruss Hall on campus.

She did it!! Congratulations to Aunt B! A fun weekend was definitely had by all!!

Maybe in another 21 years we will be back in good ole' Blacksburg for Cambria's graduation?!?!

7 Months

Dear Cambria,

You are officially 7 months old now. Each month that you turn older Daddy and I are shocked that you are getting so big and changing so much. It seems that we just started getting used to telling people you were 6 months old and now we have to tell everyone you are 7 months old.

Although I know I say this EVERY month, you really have changed so much this past month. You have learned to sit all by yourself and you love being independent and sitting on the floor playing with your toys by yourself. It's so crazy - when I look at you sitting all by yourself I no longer see my little baby. I see this beautiful little girl that you are turning into.

You now are a rolling machine and it's getting impossible to change your diaper. As soon as we lay you down on your back you immediately try to roll over onto your tummy. You are fascinated with being on your tummy lately because you REALLY want to crawl. You push your arms up and pull up onto your knees but you don't quite have all of the coordination together yet to start moving. In the meantime, it's adorable to watch you discover new ways to reach where you want to go (ie. rolling, scooching, etc.). Although I can't wait for you to crawl, at the same time I want you to wait a few more weeks because you are so mischievous already that I know Daddy and I are going to be SO busy chasing you when you can really move and explore.

Another really great thing you've caught onto in the last month is your voice. Yes you have been into squeaking and squealing in the previous months, but this month you have figured out how to talk like a big girl. You will sit on the floor and say "babababa" and "dadadada" and you always look so proud of yourself. You say it so sweetly and with such confidence and we love hearing your sweet little girl voice. You also love to laugh lately, however it's no longer a baby laugh. You now have this hearty little girl laugh and we will do just about anything to hear you do it. Many times you do it just because you like to hear it yourself. You sure are quite the vocal girl.

As for eating, you still love your bottles and you're eating about 32-35 ounces of formula a day. We also very quickly figured out this past month that you HATE baby food and you only want real food. I tried one morning to give you little bits of a real banana and you gobbled it right up. The next day I gave you some more banana and again you loved it. We slowly have started introducing table foods (the pediatrician told us it's fine because you are so good at 'chewing') and you LOVE table food. Some of your favorites are banana, avacado, puffs, yogurt melts, and strawberries. I think baby food is a thing of the past for you and we are just going to have to feed you small pieces of real food. You love to feed yourself and we are thrilled that we figured out how much you love real food. It makes for a much easier Mommy, Daddy and Cami when it comes to feeding time. We love watching you shake your arms in excitement as we come close to your highchair with food.

So, as you can see you have been VERY busy in the past month. We love watching you grow and change and each month brings so many new experiences and adventures. I can't wait to see just how far you will have come in another month. Keep growing my little love muffin!!!

Love,
Mommy

Ouch!

If you look closely at the picture above you will see that Cami is ever so delicately holding her left ear. Poor girl. Within the past week and a half Cami has had not one, but 2 ear infections.

I took her to the Doctor last week before leaving for Tech for the weekend because she was pulling at her right ear. Sure enough, she had an infection so we got the antibiotics and were on our merry way (or so we thought). Two days later I noticed Cami pulling at her left ear. I kept telling myself it was probably teething and that there was no possible way she could have another ear infection, as she was still on the medication for the first ear infection.

After watching her become more and more miserable as the weekend went on I made the executive Mommy decision that it HAD to be another ear infection in her opposite ear and that she needed to go back to the Doctor. The Doctor confirmed my diagnosis - ANOTHER ear infection in less than a week. Obviously the first medication was not strong enough for our little Miss Cambria so they gave her a new antibiotic this time in hopes to clear up any and all ear infections that she may have currently or that are in the works and on their way.

I am happy to report that after 2 days of the new antibiotic Cami appears to be feeling better. She is eating well again and sleeping MUCH better too. We hope these ear infections are a thing of the past real soon, as it is NOT fun to watch my daughter feel miserable. Until she finishes this medication and we can be certain things are all cleared up Mommy will continue to take good care of Cami and give lots and lots of snuggles. Snuggles help everyone feel better!!!

First Mother's Day

Yesterday was my very first Mother's Day with our precious Cambria and it could not have been more perfect.

I started out the day by (insert loud GASP here) sleeping in! Jon got up with Cami, gave Cami her heart medicine and her morning bottle and didn't wake me at all. It was so wonderful to not have to jump right out of bed to the sound of a fussy baby and hit the ground running for the day. Although all of the early mornings and giving up sleeping in are SO worth it, it was SO nice to sleep in for a change on my special day.

Once I finally got up about 9 it was about time for Cami to take her morning nap so I snuck in about a million kisses in 10 minutes and then put her down for her nap. Jon and I got to spend some time together planning out the rest of our day and it was so nice to just relax for a bit together.

We decided to go to lunch and do some shopping for ME in the afternoon and that's exactly what we did. It was a gorgeous day to be out and about and Cami was an excellent and patient little shopper while Mommy tried on lots of clothes in an attempt to find a few things for the summer that she feels good about wearing (sigh....why can't I lose the last of this baby weight??). Shopping was a success and I found some cute things for summer and our beach trip next month.

We ended the day by heading over to my parents house as my sister cooked my Mom and I a VERY delicious shrimp pasta dinner. It was nice to be able to see my own Mother on Mothers Day and let her know how appreciated and loved she is.

I couldn't have asked for a better day! I sure do LOVE being a Mother!!!

P.S. - All day yesterday I wore this gorgeous new ring below. This is my first Mother's Day gift from Cami and Jon. What a gorgeous ring with Cami's birthstone. It will forever be special to me and I look forward to passing it onto her someday too.