Hailey's walking!

4th of july

I am extremely grateful to those who fought and those who still fight to preserve our freedom! Thank you to my loving husband for serving his country so proudly. I love and miss you!

This is how I celebrated my independence this year:

We were packing our lunch for our day at the beach and Hailey in her new favorite spot to race towards when I am getting something from the fridge... (Yes, I do put a sponge roller in her little pony-tail or it stands straight up!)She's becoming a good little helper, she keeps the door open for me...

Hailey loves the water! I'm lucky to have friends who help me with her at the beach.

Hailey wasn't very interested in the Fireworks... all the little kids holding glow sticks were a lot more entertaining for her!

the great american backyard camp out!

This past weekend Hails and I went camping! Can you believe it? The Armed Services YMCA sponsored "The Great American Backyard Camp Out" for military and there families. They charged $7.50 per person, but they provided a tent, lantern, dinner, dessert, educational tours, compass reading lesson, crafts for the children, breakfast and 2 days of free parking at First Landing State Park. We actually got to keep the tent and the lantern, so I'd say it was a bargain!

For dinner we roasted hot dogs...and for dessert we made the famous camping tradition of s'mores!

Hailey did really well considering the extreme heat and humidity! She ended up in just a diaper and moving to a cold spot on the sleeping bag every few minutes... Needless to say I didn't get much sleep with the little wiggle worm beside me.


Our practically free tent was a lot nicer than what I had imagined we would be getting... Close your eyes and picture...wait don't close your eyes...you're reading a blog what am I thinking. So I'm sure you can picture just an old triangle tent with no zippered doors... like the one below.
The next day we went to the beach at First Landing State Park. I had never been to a beach on The Chesapeake Bay but I realized the waves were a lot smaller (I didn't think they could get any smaller) than the normal coastal beaches here in VA. The water was also a lot warmer. We ended up taking a nap on the sand... Hailey tried to "surf" on a boogie board...and we even attempted to build a sand castle...

looks like me

The older Hailey gets the more I think she starts looking like me. I attempted to put her hair into a pony tail for the first time today. Her hair is still short on the sides and longer on top but we accomplished our mission:

'half way' party

I'm happy to say that it is well over the half way point of Micah's deployment! I recently attended the ships Family Readiness Group (FRG) half way party. This party was of a tropical theme much like a luau, there were leis, grass skirts, pineapple's and we even played limbo. A half way party is basically a party for all the spouses(mainly just women, out of about 150 people 2 were men) to dress up, get together, have fun (that's what you do at parties) and celebrate the fact that you have made it half way through the deployment. I decided last minute to attend, and I am glad I did. I was well over do some much needed adult interaction without having to worry about what Hailey is putting into her mouth this time. Although it was a struggle for me to be away from Hailey for six, I repeat SIX hours! I had an awesome time with some of my friends. And yes, there were many phone calls and text messages sent to make sure she was ok.

beachin' it

I love the beach, I love feeling the hot warm sand in my toes and having the sun beat down on my SPF slathered skin. Since we live by the beach we feel that our daughter should be no stranger to it. With that being said, she has now been more times than some people have gone in their lifetime. She stays well shaded under an umbrella most of the time with a hat on and lots of sunblock being reapplied every hour or so. This is how we have been spending most of our sunny days, if not at the beach than down by the pool.

norfolk botanical gardens & first landing state park (photo blog)

Norfolk Botanical Garden

Tulips

Azaleas

English Daisies

Bald Eagle Nest

Scenery

Columbines

Hydrangeas

Tulips

Tuplips

Scenery

Scenery

Scenery


First Landing State Park Scenery and Wild Life

easter trip to california

Before Micah left on deployment we decided that Hailey and I would take a trip to California and visit my Mom around Easter. This being Hailey's first Easter is was especially nice to spend it with family. Growing up in California, I remember every Easter Sunday as one of the most beautiful Sundays of the year! This year was no different.


This Easter was very special to me it was Hailey's first Easter. It was the first year I could tell my daughter of the awesomeness of our God! It was the first year I could tell her how blessed we are to know and believe the truth, that Christ died for our sins so that we can go to heaven!! Not that I don't tell her on other days, but Easter is a special day, it's Resurrection day! The only thing missing that day was Micah.


Until our trip the only person in my family who had met Hailey was my mom. Everyone had a lot of catching up to do! Just about everyone agreed that Hailey looks "just like her daddy". Hails learned a lot while she was there, and grew a lot too! She learned how to crawl and cut 2 teeth, her two bottom ones. On our way home, in the airport, she mastered the skill of sitting up without assistance (that seems to be her favorite thing to do.)

an ode to my dad

Cary Allen Brown
November 21, 1961- September 27, 2008
My dad had a heart attack at the age of 47.

Sometimes I get mad, most times I get sad.
He was always there for me.
He was my dad.
I was always a daddy's girl.
We even wore matching clothes.
And thinking back on those days
Doesn't make me ashamed

He planted the seeds inside of my heart
At a young age,
I knew not what he taught.
As I grew older
I remembered the words he told me.
I gave my life to Christ
And all things felt right.

I wish I could tell him how thankful I am
For trying his best to raise me just right.
I'm glad that I know that I'll see him again
But right now its hard because I really miss him.

footprints for daddy

Since Micah is on deployment I figured I would keep him updated with Hailey's growth not only with pictures and videos but her foot once a month. It seems like such a simple task especially since my child cannot walk or crawl or sit without a little support as of yet....WRONG! She may not be able to do those things but she can kick her legs, try to roll over grab her foot while I am trying to paint it. Needless to say I didn't get many pictures while making her prints (I was too busy trying not to get blue and pink paint everywhere) just the end results!