Congratulations, Captain

Yup, I get to brag on my hubby. Today Josh got promoted to Captain! I'm proud of him. So I wanted to show off a couple of the pictures he sent me. Nothing really changes - his job stays the same - but he definitely deserves to be a captain now. Lt Col Lee is the one promoting him. It used to be called "getting pinned", but now they're "velcroed" : = )

Three Months!

I've been waiting to get her nursery done and put up some pictures of it, but it doesn't seem to be coming along (my fault; just gotta finish one more cross-stitch). So I have all of these other pictures from October, and I want to get some of them up! She's doing super great and last week moved into her crib - she's a big girl now! She's really smiling and talking (OK, making wordsy noises!) and it is so much fun to hear. In just over a week she'll get to have her first airplane ride! (Mommy's pretty nervous about it.)

Her daddy cracked up when he saw this picture! I'll admit it was pretty funny - there's a delay when you take a picture, and it just happened to capture the spit-up and the expression.

Look at me! I'm a miniature person!

Mocha, Mommy, and I love walks. It is gorgeous outside - cool, sunny and the mountains and water are beautiful! Unfortunately, I usually miss it all by falling asleep. There's just something about the steady rumble of the wheels that knocks me out . . .

Two Months and Growing!

Today Sophia had her two month check up and I'm happy to report that she's PERFECT! No, really, the doctor said she was doing great. It's always fun to hear that from a doctor. Honestly, she's been a delight the last couple of days - no screaming, just lots of happy smiles, cooing, and only gentle fussing when she was hungry or tired. I told Mom today that her cries are so much more expressive now and it's much easier to know what she wants. It's hard to explain, but maybe someone else understands . . .

CURRENT STATS at 9 weeks: 11lbs 14 oz (75 percentile) and 22 1/2 in long (50 percentile). Oh, and have I mentioned that she's been sleeping through the night since she was 7 weeks old? Yes, I know I'm bragging here, but it "just happened" like the book Baby Wise (recommended by Barbara-Lee) said it would. So I no longer dread the evenings, but actually look forward to them. And I'm spoiled because I'm getting plenty of sleep and have even had time to do things in the morning before she gets up!

Things are going well; I miss Josh of course, but we email every day and talk fairly often. In one more month, we'll be at the halfway point! I can't believe it!! Today I purchased a plane ticket to Lawton! I am very much looking forward to seeing everyone back there. And showing off Sophia, of course!

Enjoy the pictures!

Yes, I had to throw in some pictures of Mocha. She mostly just ignores Sophia, but once in a while, she'll sniff her. I'm looking forward to when Sophia will actually notice Mocha in return! One very neat thing I learned this week was that Sophia is the SPITTING IMAGE of her daddy!!!! I thought that was so cool, and neat, and special. Several people have told me she looks like him, and I agreed, but I really just thought it was "kind of", after all, she's a girl and a baby, and he's a grown man. But . . . his mom brought out his baby pictures this week and showed me and I was speechless. They look identical! I just think it's really neat to see that family resemblence! (But her hair is getting redder - still blondish, but with much more red than when she was born. Plus, she has my hairline, so she's a good mix of the two of us!) So, as soon as I get Josh's baby pictures scanned, I'll post a comparison!!!

Smiles Galore!

The last couple of weeks Sophia has been smiling and cooing with greater regularity. Her smiles are beautiful! They light up her whole face. Here are a few of the best:

And we even got the giggle!!

Six Weeks Old!

She's growing like a weed: 9 lbs 8 oz at 5 weeks! (That's gaining more than 2.5 lbs in one month!) One interesting thing that she started doing just a few days ago, is holding onto my shirt when she's eating or being carried sideways. Maybe it doesn't mean much, but it seems to me it means she's more cognitive that she's sideways and not very stable! She holds her head up pretty well; just a little bit of a bobble-head. While she's given several fantastic smiles, they are spontaneous and can't really be coaxed out yet. And they don't last long enough to get the camera. She does, though, have Josh's dimples!

Sophia is tracking things with her eyes, and likes watching her Peter Rabbit mobile. She knows the sound of her mommy's voice and turns her head in my direction. There are times when she is happy just to sit and look around. Those times are precious because unfortunately she suffers from colic, so the evenings are usually quite a trial. I am very much looking forward to when she outgrows it! I guess we all get payback time; I had it when I was born too. My mom, being only three blocks away, is a lifesaver. Her patience is ledgendary.

Her first dress!

There's nothing cuter than a sleeping baby (or sweeter to the ears!)

The First Two Weeks

We had a busy two weeks with Josh here. These are just a few family pictures during that time.

Daddy and Mommy get to hold Sophia.

So do Grandmas, Opa, and Grandpa!

She has so many aunts and uncles!

We visited Mt. Rainier on Sunday evening, just before Josh left.

Cutie Pie!

She Arrived!!!

Well, our biggest question was answered: we had a girl! Little Sophia Ruth Carlson was born August 1, 2007 at 12:18 PM. She weighed 6 lbs 14 oz, and measured 20.75 in long. After a long, hard labor she arrived to two tired but thrilled parents! The Lord was so gracious to allow Josh to be here for her birth. He was right beside me and supportive the whole time! She was turned wrong, thus the difficult delivery, and the resulting bruise on her head caused some jaundice. Fortunately, she did not have to stay longer in the hospital, so Friday, August 3, a brand new family of three arrived home. To their new home, I might add: our family literally moved us in the day Sophia was born! So we got to arrive to boxes and piles, but we are so thankful and appreciative of them for helping us. We couldn't have managed without them.