The Farley Family Chronicles

Dancing Addie

2009-12-02T13:09:00.000-08:00

Sometimes words just can't do a girl justice so I am not even going to try. So just sit back and watch and laugh with us. And yes she picked out her outfit for this performance.

Happy Veterans Day!

2009-11-11T10:37:00.001-08:00

Happy Veteran's Day to the smartest, sweetest, hardest working, most handsome, selfless soldier/veteran/father/husband!

And probably the only soldier who smiles in ALL of his pictures! We love you!

Picture of the Week

2009-10-07T17:21:00.000-07:00

The blog has been slightly neglected due to the fact that our house is officially on the market. I must say though that 809 is IMMACULATE.

Unless...

Put Me In the Zoo

2009-09-29T06:14:00.000-07:00

A couple of weekends ago we went to the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse. It was the perfect zoo for a young toddler. Not too big, not too small.

Wanna know which exhibit was Addie's favorite?

Not the dog...

Not the pig...

Not the pachyderms either...

It was....

The Penguins!!!

Miss Manners

2009-09-19T06:41:00.000-07:00

The fastest way to melt my heart:

Cue the sweetest little sing song voice ever heard in all the land. Tank eww (Thank you) says the adorable little voice when given a toy that is just beyond the reach of her diminutive little body. It is by far my favorite thing to hear her say (other than Mama of course).

Addie's language has developed by leaps and bounds this month. Our little 15 month old is learning how to communicate verbally! She can say a couple of phrases (ok, some are really just compound words!) Sentences are just around the corner.

Other words learned this month:

Moe (more)
Bubbas (bubbles)
Anna (Anna is our neighbor)
Diepah (diaper)
Bah (ball)
Duck
Ahh done (all done)
Addieee (Addie)
Hiiii Daddeeeee or Hiiii Mama

She has also learned animal noises as well. She knows that a cow says "moooooo", and that a sheep says "baaaah baaaah". She can also identify all of her body parts.

The video below pretty much speaks for itself. You've just got to love the bubbles in her hair!

I do realize that I ended a sentence with a preposition in that sentence. Having a child acquiring language makes me that much more aware of grammatical shortcomings. I'm working on it.

Medal of Honor

2009-09-18T08:00:00.000-07:00

I found this story on CNN very touching. Most of the filming for this segment was done on Fort Drum. In fact the recipient was in Nathan's brigade on his 2nd deployment. You might want to grab a box of tissues first.

Workin' Hard

2009-09-17T06:07:00.000-07:00

Over Memorial Day weekend my dad and uncle came to NY to help us rebuild our front porch. The porch had some structural problems from the get go, and they really seemed to get worse this past winter with the 215 inches of snow recorded in Watertown. We knew that it wouldn't pass the inspection in the condition that it was in when we put our house on the market.

Luckily my dad is a carpentry genius, and we couldn't be more appreciative of the help (and wonderful company) he and Uncle Sean gave us over the holiday weekend. I'm sure my dad is relieved that this is the LAST project he will help us on in this house. I have to say that I am actually looking forward to being renters for awhile.

Addison just had to be in the thick of the action. No matter how hard I tried to keep her engaged inside, she just really wanted to be out with the boys and the tools. She really tried to help by taking the screws out of the box and pushing them into the decking, and saying "eh eh eh." Fortunately Daddy let her help out a bit.

I will post pictures of the finished product soon. We are waiting for the wood to dry out a bit more before painting and staining. Hopefully I can find some before pictures too, but Nathan had the porch torn apart before I could take one. Just imagine the ugliest green outdoor carpeting you have ever seen.

Spin Doctors

2009-09-10T18:42:00.000-07:00

A visit to the doctor usually involves a lot of waiting. Here's how we spend our wait time:

We are happy to announce that Addie has shown absolutely no signs on motion sickness. Nice!

Slow Down

2009-09-04T19:28:00.001-07:00

Today in an effort to get our guest bedroom cleaned and organized I packed up Addie's jumperoo. And her swing. And her bouncy seat.

I took apart the Jumperoo and stuffed it in the guest bedroom (aka the junk room) months ago, but when I actually packed it up in a box and put it in the attic I felt as if I was officially saying farewell to Addie's babyhood. I have to admit that I teared up a bit. She was such a sweet baby, and I am sad that those days are over.

Don't get me wrong, I love, LOVE, LOVE the stage Addie is currently going through. She is so much fun, and I love watching her grow and learn. Despite the fact that she is walking and talking (and running!), I still consider her a baby. Well, actually I think of her as half baby, half toddler.

The problem is when you have a newborn EVERYONE tells you how fast babies grow up, but when it's your own baby it is so shocking. I just can't believe that we used to swadle her, carry her everywhere (boy those days are oooover), feed her every 2 hours, etc. Another problem we have is that Addie is 15 months going on 3 years. She really thinks that she's a big kid. When we go to the park she prefers to play with the preschoolers. Naturally I have to assume that this is due to her advanced intellect, but it does make her appear older than she is.

I feel like tomorrow I am going to wake up and she will be in school. I must admit that I am extremely thankful that I get to spend every day with Addie. I know that even though these baby days go by very quickly, I have been there for everything. No regrets!

The following trip down memory lane is more for me, but I hope others enjoy it as well!

Diamonds, and Emeralds, and Pearls, Oh My

2009-09-02T18:59:00.000-07:00

So Addie has really been into jewelry lately. One day she found my jewelry box, and the rest is history. Nathan and I humored her a bit by letting her wear a necklace for like 1 minute (strangulation hazard). She was in hog heaven. We then moved the jewelry box out of her reach, which she continued to find and get into.

I don't know where her fascination in jewelry came from. I like jewelry, but haven't been wearing it for awhile. Before Nate was home I was lucky to get a shower, or have time to put makeup on. Needless to say, accessorizing was rarely a top priority. I think that Addison got her need to accessorize from her Nana, although I can't be positive.

A couple of days ago we were all eating breakfast and of course Addie was finished before Nathan and I had even started eating. She went into the kitchen to play in her drawer, which is filled with plastic bowls, cookie cutters, and other various kitchen items. When she came back into the dining room she was wearing sippy cup lids AS BRACELETS. She was so proud of her new jewelry!

Nathan is convinced that he will be buying Addie diamonds before she's 3. My oh my!

Our New Drumset

2009-08-28T19:03:00.000-07:00

Summer Reading

2009-08-25T14:05:00.000-07:00

Everyone deserves to indulge in a few good reads during the sweltering summer months. This week it seems as if all the media buzz is focusing on what President Obama is reading during his vacation on Martha's Vineyard. Hey, at least we're over Michelle's shorts already.

Anyways I thought I would share our favorite summer reads this year.

Nathan:

Nathan read Born to Run on the way home from Afghanistan and hasn't stopped talking about it. In fact, we had to place an order for the book (among others) at Amazon because it was just that good.

Lauren:

Almost Moon is extremely dark, yet very compelling. I almost quit reading the book at the end of the first chapter because it was so disturbing, but anyone who has read Lovely Bones will understand how Alice Sebold can draw you in.

Addison:

Addie just can't get enough of the Brown Bear series. I'm not sure if it's the simple repetitive lyrics, or the beautiful illustrations, or the fact that the books are about animals (which are her life blood) that draw her in, but she could read these books all day! The only one missing from our collection is Panda Bear, Panda Bear, What Do You See, which I am sure we will be adding very soon.

Welcome Home Honey! There's a Bat in the Washing Machine

2009-08-23T18:58:00.000-07:00

Addie and I excitedly welcomed Nathan home from deployment last Sunday at 2:30 in the morning. It was an odd time to welcome him home, but great nonetheless.

The day of Nathan's arrival I spent the day cleaning. Of course cleaning with a young toddler is often fruitless. During the cleaning process I put a load of Addie's diapers in the wash. As I was transferring the diapers to the dryer I noticed a black mass in the washing machine. Perplexed by what the mass could be, I moved closer only to notice fur. My first inclination was that I had a dead mouse in the washing machine. This pretty much freaked me out as we have never had a mouse in the house (that I know of).

I gave myself a pep talk and figured that I could remove the mouse from the washing machine. As I was strategizing my next move I noticed that the dead animal appeared to have wings. That's right folks, there was a dead bat in my washing machine! A. DEAD. BAT.

A dead bat might not be any more problematic than a dead mouse for some people, but I must admit that I have a pretty severe bat phobia. I have no clue what this phobia stems from, as I have never had a negative encounter with bat. I am taking the easy way out and blaming the media for demonizing the blood sucking creatures.

After a brief panic attack, and a few calls to my mom to express my concern that we could possibly have a bat infestation in our house I decided that the removal of the bat would have to wait until Nate came home. There was no way I could get that bat out and stay sane. On one of the many calls to my mom I expressed my concerns of a bat attacking Addie (seriously). Of course she HAD to tell me that it would NEVER happen, but after I was off the phone with her I found this story. FREAKY.

So, when Nathan got home at 2:30 a.m. I didn't even mention the bat, but after a few hours of sleep I figured he was up for some bat removal. When I mentioned that there was a dead bat in our washing machine Nate just laughed and went about his business. After he spent a couple of hours playing with Addie I was really getting antsy for him to get that bat out. Not to mention the bathroom was starting to stink. I finally resorted to begging.

When he opened to washing machine he said "Oh my gosh, there's a dead bat in our washing machine!" Are. You. Kidding. Me? I had only been telling him for 3 hours. He swiftly removed the bat carcass, and I bleached the washing machine.

Oh the joys of having a husband home!

As Promised

2009-08-14T14:37:00.000-07:00

Phase I:

I said sometime ago that I would be filling in the rather large gaps from my blogging absence. And I really have been working on it, just not fast enough. With Nathan home (more on that soon) I have a lot more free time on my hands. I should be able to blog more often. In the meantime, enjoy these posts:

Addie's haircut

Old McDonald's Farm

4th of July

Also, I know that the comment section was once turned off on the blog, but it is now on. Feel free to comment if you see a particular post that you enjoy. By leaving comments I will (a) know what things people prefer to see/read on the blog and (b) know that people are actually reading the blog (which will be an incentive for me to continue blogging).

Beating the Heat

2009-08-13T11:19:00.000-07:00

With lots of cool treats!

It has been hot here lately. Okay, well maybe not all that hot compared to what most of you are experiencing in Virginia. We've had a very cool summer this year. In fact I have not (up until this point) been hot enough to install one of our window air conditioners. We've been doing just fine with fans. By the way, no one (and I really mean no one) has built-in air conditioners in their homes here.

Another way we beat the heat is to go to the mall or grocery store. The park is also great because it is on a rather large hill, and is usually 5 degrees cooler than our backyard. The biggest problem is that I HATE cooking in the heat. I am struggling with making Addie nutritious homemade food without turning on the oven or range. Tomorrow I will use the crock pot (as suggested by my lovely neighbors). Nathan is the grill master, so that is out of the picture.

Tell me...

2009-08-12T11:00:00.000-07:00

What is cuter than a baby with a butterfly on her bottom?

A baby with a smile on her face!

Addie's First Concert

2009-08-09T09:52:00.000-07:00

Every summer there is a local concert series in Watertown. At the beginning of the week I got a notice that the USO had 50 free tickets to the Laurie Berkner Band concert on Saturday. Since we have a no TV policy in our house (for babies/toddlers) I had no former knowledge of the Laurie Berkner Band. Apparently they are big time in the toddler entertainment world.

So I did what any red-blooded American would do, and claimed our FREE tickets to the show. Oh and did I mention that the tickets were FREE? When I went to the USO to pick up our FREE tickets a couple of hours before the show they gave Addie a swag bag filled with 2 Disney movies, stickers, candy, popcorn, cookies, an Elmo toy, etc. In other words, the USO is super generous!

The concert was wonderful! I was a little nervous because Addie missed her nap due to the ticket pick-up time, and there just wasn't enough time to squeeze one in before the show. Addie had the time of her life. She danced and ran around with the other kids. She is such a social butterfly. A little 5 year old named Paige immediately befriended Addie, and was pretty helpful at corralling Addie when she started to walk too far. Addie outlasted many of the much older kids in terms of energy, as many kids were carried out asleep in their parent's arms halfway through the show.

Addie's "friend" Paige is the one in the pink capri pants.

Our Little Bookworm

2009-07-30T09:26:00.001-07:00

Addie loves books! I can't even begin to explain how excited this makes me (and her Dad)!

We've been reading to Addie since she was in the womb. I remember receiving weekly e-mails on fetal development all through out my pregnancy, and when I got word that she could hear we started reading to her. We actually began buying her books before we even thought about conceiving her. Needless to say, books are valued in this family.

I have to admit that I often feel as though I short change Addie with story time. At the end of the day I am exhausted, and the last thing I want to do is read stories. I almost always opt for Goodnight Moon not only because it is short and cute, but also because it takes little effort on my part. I worried that my night time indifference would hamper Addie's love of books. Luckily this is not the case, and I usually make up ground in the daytime with a few stories.

Addie rarely sits through a whole story, but her attention span at story time is getting longer. When she wants off my lap I just continue reading while she plays. She just loves to look at the pictures, especially if the pictures involve animals. She will go to the book shelf pick out a book, sit on the floor, and flip through the pages. Often times the book is upside down, but she still studies the picture with gusto!

Recently she has decided that she wants to look at "grown-up" books too. She points at the one she wants and whines until I get it off the shelf. As you can tell, I usually oblige.

Hmm...I don't quiet think she's ready for A Million Little Pieces.

Water Play

2009-07-30T09:00:00.001-07:00

As I was cooking dinner a couple of nights ago I heard splashing nearby. I turned around to find...

It is evident that Addie is in dire need of some water play. Unfortunately, we haven't had very many hot days here in Upstate New York. I guess Jake's water dish will have to suffice for now.

* Note: I do realize it is dangerous to have standing water (in any amount) around a baby or toddler. We do have the kitchen gated off so Addie can't get to the water. I have tried putting his water on the counter when Addie is around, but then I forget to put it back down. Obviously a thirsty dog in the summer isn't ideal. So for now the solution is that Addie is only in the kitchen when I am cooking.

Big News!

2009-07-20T18:35:00.000-07:00

Loosen your belts a couple of notches and start brushing up on your Italian because we're moving to ... Naples, Italy!

As if that weren't cool enough, Nathan has been assigned to a NATO unit pending his graduation from WOCS. Essentially this means that he will have a non-deployable status during our 3 year (or more) stay in Italy. He reports to duty on June 19, 2010, so we have about a year to go (and a move to Georgia to make).

All in all, we are super-excited to have the opportunity to live in such a historical location. We are looking forward to the food (and wine of course!), the weather, the art, being 2 hours from Rome (and close to a lot of other great cities) amongst other things. We're not too enthused about the organized crime and the garbage situation, but hey "C'est la vie!" I know I will really need to learn so Italian!

Another Haircut

2009-07-17T09:37:00.000-07:00

Last time we were in Virginia my mom kept joking that she was going to cut Addie's bangs while I wasn't looking. After her first haircut I swore I wasn't going to cut her hair for a REALLY long time. The more my mom's words resonated with me the more I started to think it was a good idea to straighten it up a bit.

I knew that I had to have someone else do it this time because there is no way Addie would sit still for me. Luckily we have a cute little kids salon just blocks from our house. The moment we walked in the door Addie wanted to play with this house. She loved going through the door.

When it came time for the actual haircut I put her in the barber's chair, which just happened to be a Barbie Jeep, and she new something was up. She literally jumped out of the jeep and into my arms when the hairdresser came at her with the scissors. Luckily I was able to hold her while the hairdresser worked her magic. This was the best shot I got afterwards, which is not so great, but it gives you a good idea about how things went.
I had mixed emotions after her haircut. On one hand she looked very well groomed, on the other hand I miss her long unruly locks. I will say that it seems as if her hair gets more red every day!

Old McDonald's Farm

2009-07-15T09:20:00.000-07:00

Addie's love of animals seems to grow everyday. The excitement is overwhelming when she is in the presence of any animal. I thought it was high time she'd enjoy Old McDonald's Farm. I have heard about this farm since we moved to New York 6 years ago, but never really had any need or desire to visit. They do have a pretty wide variety of animals.

Addie's favorite animals were the buunies. I think it had a lot to do with the fact that they were right at eye level, and we were allowed to pet them. It was really hard to pull her away from the bunnies to go see the other animals

Addie wasn't really sure what to do in the bounce house. I don't think it will be long before she has that one figured out.

This little mule (umm...I think it's a mule) was literally just days old. It was so cute!

These baby pigs just loved their Mama's milk. I love to see other mammals nursing their young!

Addie's Walking

2009-07-12T13:56:00.000-07:00

Addison has been walking for awhile now, and everyone has been asking for videos. Well, I am happy to announce that I finally have one for everyone's viewing pleasure!

I created this in iMovie, and had the time of my life. Many more of these types of movies will follow. Sorry, but the quality of the film is not the best in most clips. Our new computer has really made a new video camera seem necessary, as I normally just use the video function on my camera. It just isn't high-speed enough to keep up with our new computing technology.

I hope everyone enjoys nonetheless.

Happy Fourth of July!

2009-07-04T09:04:00.000-07:00

Eat your heart out Uncle Sam!

I'd also like to wish my husband a very happy anniversary. I really can't believe that we have been married for 6 years! It really feels like we got married yesterday. Okay, when you count the actual time we've spent together it's more like we've been married for 3 years. Though, in my book we should get extra credit for all the time spent apart. I guess marriage doesn't really work like that.

Stay Tuned...

2009-06-24T13:42:00.000-07:00

Due to popular demand I am working on back blogging about all that has been going on in our lives in recent months. Be patient, as I have posts from March that just need the finishing touches. Most of you know that I have been SUPER busy this spring/summer. Usually sitting down and blogging at the end of a long day is the last thing I want to do. Not to mention, the fact that I am a pseudo-single mom means that I spend Addie's sleep time catching up on housework. I will try to be quick, as I have TONS of pictures to share.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T08:16:00.000-07:00

The Longest Week

2009-04-03T08:55:00.000-07:00

We've had a really long, tumultuous week. Many of you already know that Addie spent a full 7 days as a patient at UVA.
Addie narrowly escaped having a feeding tube inserted due to the progress we were able to make with feeding therapy. In the week prior to being admitted we found out that Addie lost a net total of a pound. She's never been a great eater, but she quit eating entirley in the two weeks prior to our admission.

On top of her inability to gain weight we found out that she had RSV. Uggghh....I mistakenly thought RSV only happened to formula fed/daycare babies. In actuallity almost everyone gets RSV in their lifetime, but it's only serious in babies. Luckily Addie's RSV never reached her lungs even though she was coughing. Although I have no proof, I am attributing this to all of the antibodies she receives in her breastmilk. The worst part about having RSV is being put on isolation. She got over the RSV in about 2 days, and I had to keep her entertained in a 10 x 10 room for 5 days. This was NOT an easy feat.

When we left yesterday Addie got back up to 14 pounds. She needs to gain 2 full pounds to be in the 3rd percentile on the weight charts. I am determined to do this, although Dr. Borrowitz said it could take months to accomplish. Not only will she be on continued eating therapy, but she also is taking an appetite stimulant. Fortunately the side effect of this medicine is that she sleeps more. Umm...where was this drug 4 months ago when she stopped eating and sleeping?

I must say that I enjoyed working with top-notch doctors at UVA. We were never brushed under the rug, and they took our situation very seriously. We even have an appointment with the specialist who saw us in the hospital in two weeks. Yes, that's right, some doctors aren't too busy to actually see/treat their patients. Am I still bitter about the previous medical situation...you betcha.

Addie on admission day. She didn't move from this position.

Addie on day #3

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2009-03-17T08:18:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I haven't done one of these posts in a really long time.

Addie

Saddie

Maddie

and finally...
Gladdie!

I hope everyone had a wonderful St. Patrick's Day!

Addie Medical Update

2009-03-03T18:08:00.000-08:00

I guess it is finally time for an update on Addison's medical situation. I haven't written about this recently because it consumes a lot of my time/life, and I often want to write about other things. But anyways...

As you probably know, Addie was diagnosed with reflux at 3 months. She was put on a small dose of Zantac and we went on with life. It was under control (or so I believed) until she was about 5 1/2 months. She became a lot more fussy around this time, and she started waking up ALL THE TIME. Being the inexperienced mom that I am, I really chalked it up to teething.

At her 6 month checkup our doctor became concerned with her inability to gain weight. Since we were coming to Virginia to wait out the rough New York winter she suggested that we find a doctor to keep tabs on her weight. The doctor in Virginia was not too concerned with her weight at first (because she was ahead of the game on development), and even suggested we take her off of the Zantac. BIG MISTAKE!

It didn't take long to figure out that she really still needed to be medicated. She actually had silent reflux, which meant that she was swallowing all of the acid that came up. In other words, the stomach acid was going through her esophagus twice. She then got prescribed Prevacid, which never worked for her. At this point (2 1/2 months later) we were directed to a pediatric gastrointerologist.

Which brings me to our current situation...

We were referred to a doctor who was voted one of the top doctors in the Washington D.C. area. I feel as if we were in good hands. We had our first appointment in late February, and it resulted in Addie being put on some pretty hefty doses of meds. She now takes Prilosec in the morning, and Zantac at night. Her dose of Zantac is 6 times what her pediatrician had her on.

Also, the doctor wanted her to have an endoscopy and upper GI series to make sure that we were treating the right thing. She had to get anesthetized for the endoscopy, which was very hard on both of us. The doctor and staff were all very wonderful. Two areas were biopsied (both came back normal), and they were able to see that her lower esophagus is very swollen. The upper GI was much less invasive, but unfortunately for Addie it was probably the worst test. She had to drink barium (nasty, vile stuff), and then be still for the x-ray machines. Keeping Addie still is a quiet a chore. They did see her reflux the barium, but we did find out that she had no intestinal obstructions or malformations.

The medicine seems to be working and she appears to be gaining weight. We go back in a couple of weeks to make sure we are on the right track with her treatment. I feel terrible that she had to be in excruciating pain for so long. It's really no wonder why she hates to eat, and has trouble sleeping. She still doesn't have much interest in solid food, and the doctor told me that her aversions might take a long time to break.

I must say through this whole ordeal I feel I have been very fortunate on the insurance front. I LOVE Tricare, and believe that it must be one of the best aspects of military life. I have paid a total of $6 (2 prescriptions) for medical costs in the past 3 months. We never have co-pays or deductibles, and Tricare has been wonderful about getting me into the doctors I want to see even if they aren't network providers. Every cloud has a silver lining!

Baby Supermodel???

2009-02-27T18:30:00.000-08:00

Addie had a doctor's appointment with her new pediatric gastro-interologist on Monday. That is another blog in and of itself. Since it was her first time seeing this new doctor they weighed and measured her. And the stats are:

Weight: 14 lbs (under 3rd percentile)
Height: 28 inches (90th percentile)

Her weight was actually way off the charts, and even when they combined her height and weight she was still under the 3rd percentile (which is as low as they would measure). I really don't know when she got so tall. She has always been in the 5oth percentile for her height. She must have had a major growth spurt recently, but I think she is likely to head back down closer to average soon. I just can't help but laughing at these stats. By the way, we will definitley be in need of a seamstress if these numbers don't find balance soon.

Our Friend, Richard Engle

2009-02-24T08:36:00.000-08:00

Meet our new family friend....
A few days ago, I was on the phone with Nathan and he nonchalantly mentioned that there was an NBC news reporter staying in HIS tent. Of course my first reaction was that he needed to try to be on the national news. Afterall, I would have been jumping up and down waving my arms around shouting "Pick me, pick me....I want to be on the news!" But Nathan is not me, and much can be said about his decorum (especially in situations like these).

Then I finally got to the more important questions concerning Nate's new roomate (like the reporter's name, and what he was reporting on). I thought Nate would tell me it was some Joe Schmoe reporter that I'd never heard of. But again, I was wrong. It was Richard Engle, and if you've ever watched NBC Nightly News you will recognize him as their foreign war correspondant. Someone famous in my husband's tent?! Holy cow!

The next day, when Nate calls back I had to grill the poor guy even more about his new friend. They ate breakfast together, and that's not all.... Nathan showed him pictures of Addie. Richard Engle told Nathan that she was beautiful. That's right folks, a famous journalist thinks our daughter is cute! I can't say that I really needed that confirmation, but it's nice to have anyway.

Oh yeah, and we're not sure when the important news that our friend Richard was reporting on will make it to the airwaves. I have been watching like a hawk and will definitely post it when it airs.

Valentine's Day

2009-02-16T18:49:00.001-08:00

I spent this Valentine's Day like so many previous Valentine's Days in years past...without a Valentine*. Don't worry, I'm not bitter mostly in part because I got to celebrate with Addie. And of course the ever-faithful husband sent flowers from half the world away. I can always count on Nathan to send flowers when he is gone, and it really does brighten my day.

Nathan mentioned on the phone earlier in the week that he was excited to have another Valentine to shop for. I guess he turned into a super softy for that little girl. She is pretty cute and special after all. When my flowers were delivered on Valentine's Day there was a bouquet for Addie as well. It had Addie written all over it. I'm amazed that he has been gone for almost 3 months, and yet he still knows Addie so well. I couldn't resist taking pictures, but Addie really wanted to eat the flowers.

Addie's flowers

My flowers

Thanks Dad!

* Nathan and I have spent 4 Valentine's Days IN A ROW away from each other. You may remember that he was deployed from January 2006 to May 2007 (2 right there). Last year (2008) he was in Georgia for training, and deployed again this year. In fact, out of the 6 possible Valentine's Days in our 5 1/2 year marriage we've spent 1 together (deployed in 2004). WOW!

Daddy...

2009-02-13T17:44:00.000-08:00

will you be my Valentine???

Waterbabies

2009-02-12T08:33:00.000-08:00

Twice a week, for the past 4 weeks Addie and I have schlepped to the swimming pool in Winchester at 9:00 a.m. for swimming lessons. Last week Addie graduated (with honors) from the first session of Waterbabies. They weren't actually lessons per se, as the purpose was really just to get her used to being in the water. Some days she really loved it, and other days she hated it. She mostly hated floating on her back and getting cold.

As for the floating issue, she is much more comfortable now than she was when we first started. As far as being cold in the pool, there is really nothing I could do about it. The poor girl seriously has no fat on her body to keep her warm. Many of the other babies her age in our class weighed 5-8 pounds more than her.

On the last day I asked one of the lifeguards to take pictures so that I could send them to Nathan, and thought that I would put a few of them on here too. All in all, we liked the class enough to sign up for the next session. I plan on keeping her in swimming classes until the summer so that she will enjoy being in the water this summer.

8 months ?!

2009-02-04T09:25:00.000-08:00

How can it be that Addie just turned 8 months old? Where has the time gone? Surely if life had a pause button I'd have my finger on it all the time. I love watching her grow up, but I'm not sure I like the fact that it occurs at break-neck speed.

The other day we were at story time and I noticed that Addie was developmentally on par with the 11 month olds. I know it's a slippery slope to compare babies to each other because they all develop at such different rates, but I couldn't help being alarmed by what I saw. At 8 months she has her crawling down pat, pulls up, and is cruising the furniture.

She really wants to walk. She no longer likes to be carried or held. She really thinks that the world is her oyster. I keep thinking that it was just yesterday that Addie slept in my arms all day.

Anyways, enough with the lamenting...I included the video of Addie crawling because I just realized there were no crawling videos on here. Usually I take longer videos and send them to Nathan.

The Adventures of Curious Addie

2009-01-26T18:48:00.000-08:00

Written & Illustrated by L. A. Farley

This is Addie. She's a good little girl, but she's very curious. Today the lady with all the milk got out Addie's toys, and Addie couldn't wait to see what was in the basket. She was so excited she decided to scale the side of the basket and take a peek inside. Curious Addie was so surprised to find a big monkey named George in the basket.

Addie decided that the best way to play with George the monkey was to climb right into the basket with him. The lady with all the milk told her it wasn't a good idea, but Addie was just so curious.

Addie tried and tried to get in the basket, but she couldn't get both of her legs in. She kept getting stuck and kicking her legs in the air. The lady with all the milk kept laughing at Addie and wouldn't even help her climb in.

But Curious Addie was determined to get in that basket with the big monkey. She tried all of the ways she could think of to get in, but she only ever got one leg in.

At last, Curious Addie gave up getting in the basket and took a rest in her chair. She was so exhausted that the lady with all the milk took her upstairs to her room, gave her some wonderful milk, and put her to sleep in her crib. She slept very peacefully, and dreamed of new adventures.

Thou Shalt...

2009-01-25T07:25:00.000-08:00

not covet thy baby's eyelashes.

But how could you not?

Drop and Give Me 20

2009-01-23T06:50:00.000-08:00

Guess who can do pushups? When I was pregnant Nathan used to joke that he was going to make our child do pushups by the time they were 1. Apparently he was off by 5 months, but then again she is an overachiever. Her form isn't perfect, but she does have 5 months to work on it. Then again maybe she is practicing yoga; it does look like the downward dog.

What a Mess!

2009-01-15T18:09:00.000-08:00

This little girl is seriously into EVERYTHING. She is so amazingly curious, which isn't so bad until you pair that with her new found mobility. She has perfected her crawling, and can get anywhere she wants to go. She is also pulling up on things, which is pretty darn scary.

Jumping for Johnny

2009-01-13T12:44:00.000-08:00

I don't know how this happened, but Addie loves Johnny Cash. One day Ben and I were driving home from shopping and Johnny Cash came on the iPod (which was in the car adapter), and Addie went nuts. She was singing along in a rather pretty voice. Of course a few days later when I was at Target I just couldn't resist buying a Johnny Cash CD for her.

A couple of days ago I was cooking and decided to play some cash for her while she was in her jumper. She was singing along rather loudly (and no, she is not crying as my mom thought she was), but it was pretty cute nonetheless. She didn't know I was filming her, or else she wouldn't have sang.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-27T11:14:00.000-08:00

I hope that everyone has had a very Merry Christmas. Addie had a whirlwind Christmas. The only thing that was missing was Daddy (okay, so that's kind of a big thing), but everyone helped us have a wonderful Christmas despite Nathan not being here.

On Christmas Eve the whole family went to the annual Farley Family dinner. We all had a really wonderful time.

On Christmas morning Addie opened her stocking and got her presents from Santa at Nanna and Baba's house. Santa left really wonderful Haba and Selecta toys in her stocking, but her favorite item was her new toothbrush.

Then we went straight to Grandma and Grandpa's house. She was showered with gifts by everyone there. She loved all the shiny paper and boxes. What a lucky little girl.

Then we came back to Nanna and Baba's and napped for awhile. We then went to see Marley and Me at the theater. Addie has been to two movies when she was teeny tiny, and slept all the way through them. I wasn't sure how she'd do now that she is older, but she was really wonderful. The last 20 minutes of the movie I had to get up and stand in the back because she always prefers standing to sitting. All in all, she did wonderful. When we went back to Nanna and Baba's we opened all of the family gifts with Amber, Curry and Ryn Ryn. At this point Addie had had enough and I put her to bed around 7:00. It was a big few days for a little girl.

Who could resist a shot of Fancy Nancy doing the Marilyn Monroe?

Santa at Work

2008-12-23T11:03:00.000-08:00

Addie got to got to the annual Christmas party at Midwesco. She loved visiting Baba.... I mean Santa at work. It was great fun seeing Baba interact with all the other children. Many of the youngsters were quiet scared of Santa, but not Addie.

One of the nice ladies at Midwesco....I mean elves from the North Pole brought gifts for all of the children. This was Addie's first experience opening a wrapped gift and she caught on rather quickly. Once the gift was open she was frantic to get at the little turtle in the package. Unfortunately it took us a few minutes to free him from all that plastic, but once liberated Addie sucked on him for a long time.

Santa Clause

2008-12-22T19:00:00.001-08:00

Addie is so fortunate to be the granddaughter of Santa Clause. No yucky germy mall Santa for us (and no lines to wait in!) Here is a little taste of the photo shoot we did last night.

All I Want For Christmas...

2008-12-22T13:00:00.000-08:00

Is my two front teeth.

Guess what? Addie got both of her bottom front teeth this weekend! Saturday afternoon her front left finally popped. We could feel it through the gums for quite a while. This morning when I stuck my finger in to feel it I found another tooth! It was quiet a surprise because I never felt the second one coming.

Hair Today, Gone Tommorow

2008-12-17T19:16:00.000-08:00

Addie's hair has been getting kind of unruly, so I decided it was finally time for her first haircut. I swore I'd never cut her hair, but if you look at the pictures below you will see that it needed some straightening out.

Before:

After:

Note to Self: It is really hard to cut a 6 month old's hair, especially when said child wants the scissors.

Picture of the Day

2008-12-16T19:31:00.000-08:00

6 Months

2008-12-08T19:02:00.000-08:00

As you may already know, Addie had her 6 month birthday a little over a week ago. I truly cannot believe that she is half a year old already. She has developed quiet a personality.

Likes:

People - Addie loves people. I don't what else to say, but that she is the epitome of a people person. She enjoys making "friends" with people in any public place by singing to strangers. She is an equal opportunity people person, as she especially loves elderly people and African Americans. These two groups of individuals get leg kicks and squeals from Addie no matter what.
Jake - I said it before, but Addie truly adores Jake. She really lights up when Jake walks into the room. She is enamored by all of his odd behaviors (scratching, licking, rolling around, etc.) Jake on the other hand is occasionally warm to Addie.
Bath time - I think this is Addie's favorite part of the day. Since bath time is at the end of the day I am usually tired and ready to get her to bed, but Addie could probably play in the tub for hours.
Long car rides - She had a month or so in which she wasn't so sure about her car seat. These days though, she loves to go on trips, and ALWAYS falls asleep.
Hazel - There is a baby in one of our playgroups named Hazel. She is 12 days older than Addie. This summer we were walking to the farmer's market and found out that Hazel lives two blocks down from us. Anyways, at first Addie was indifferent to Hazel. Well, everything changed the other day we saw Hazel at the store. They grabbed each other's hands, kicked their legs, and squealed in delight. A couple of days later at playgroup they rolled around together, and were so excited at the sight of the other one. I didn't know this could happen at 6 months.
Jumping - Nathan got Addie a jump-a-roo for their Christmas together. Now she tries to jump whether she is in the jump-a-roo or not. It is quiet amusing to watch.
Mirrors - She absolutely loves her reflection. This is normal for babies her age, but it is so funny to see her light up at her own reflection.
Being naked - This really doesn't need further explaining.
Ittsy Bitsy Spider - This song can stop tears in their tracks, and always brings out a smile.

Dislikes:

Coats - Addie hates her coats. I think she hates them because they restrict her movement, but I am not a 100% sure. She often cries at the sight of a coat.
Hats - The same goes for hats. She absolutely hates them (unless she is looking at herself in the mirror with a hat on, and then its hilarious). I finally got her a hat that buckles under her chin so she can't take it off. We haven't tried it yet, but it might make her really mad.
Solid food - We had a couple of good experiences with solids before Addie started having bad reactions. Now she turns her head if you even come near her with a spoon. The pediatrician told me to hold off a bit due to her sensitive stomach.
Cameras - Have you noticed that Addie is rarely smiling in pictures? we have taken over 1000 pictures since her birth, and there are smiles in maybe 2% of the pictures. This is odd to me considering what a happy baby she is.
Naps - Don't even wanna talk about it.

I am just happy that her likes far outweigh her dislikes. I love wondering what kind of curve ball Addie will throw at me every month with her developing personality. Watch out world...

Itty Bitty Snow Angels

2008-12-08T08:29:00.000-08:00

I took this video on Thanksgiving, which is the day Nathan left for Afghanistan. The two of them are too cute!

My Oh My...

2008-11-25T18:06:00.001-08:00

What a difference 5 months makes. This picture was taken last week.

This was taken about 5 months ago. Off the top of my head I will say Addie is 3 weeks, and about 7 pounds here.

Teething Troubles

2008-11-24T18:40:00.000-08:00

We've had a really rough week due to teething. I use the collective pronoun "we" because the teething process has truly affected the whole family. Of course I know that the turmoil that has been inflicted on Nathan and I is nothing compared to what Addie is experiencing. I would gladly take her pain as my own, but unfortunately that is not how things work.

Addie has had the classic teething symptoms (e.g., drooling, gnawing on everything) for a while now. At the beginning of last week she started having major sleep issues. This was odd because Addie has been a pretty decent sleeper since birth. A few days later she wouldn't allow me to put her down, so I just carried her everywhere. Then her gums were super inflamed. At this point I realized that teething must be the cause of all the problems. Parenting books and the Internet confirmed that teething can cause major sleep disruptions in some babies.

We have found very little relief in "normal" teething remedies such as teething rings and Tylenol. We did find homeopathic teething tablets at the drugstore which have really done wonders for us. The first night she took them she slept 6 straight hours! She is also nursing about double what she was a week ago. I think nursing provides her the most comfort. I am thankful that she is not a baby who quits nursing during teething because she is so small.

After all this we have no teeth to show for the pain. We keep hoping that one has popped up every time she wakes up, but no such luck for her. Keep your fingers crossed that she gets a tooth out soon for everyone's sake. Also, Nathan really wants to see one before he leaves on Thursday.

The Bailout

2008-11-20T17:43:00.000-08:00

The word bailout has recently become a fixture in the vernacular of the American people. This past weekend we got to experience a bailout firsthand. Hopefully the Farley Bailout, as we will call it, will make you laugh. Anyways, here goes...

Friday 3:30 p.m.

Nathan lets Jake out back to do his "business" in the fenced (see pictures below) in backyard. In the meantime Nate goes inside to check on something he is downloading.

3:37 p.m.

Nate goes to bring Jake back in , and realizes that he is no longer in the backyard. Nathan walks up and down the streets in our neighborhood looking for Jake.

5:00 p.m.

Nathan gets in the Xterra, and drives around for 30 minutes looking for Jake. We have at this point realized that Jake doesn't have his collar on with his address and phone number. He even went so far to ask the guy in the wheelchair that goes up and down the street (whom he almost hit a few months back on accident) if he had seen a crazy lab causing trouble on the streets.

7:00 p.m.

We lament Jake's crazy antics, but we're actually really worried about him. In the past when he's run off he was usually gone for about 3 hours. We hope he will find his way home soon.

10:22 p.m.

Lauren gets in the Xterra to look for Jake. I drove all around the neighborhood, and I even stopped 2 teenage boys playing football in the street to ask if they had seen a yellow lab. Once again, no luck.

11:45 p.m.

Nathan and I go to bed worried sick about Jake. Needless to say we really don't sleep all that well.

Saturday 8:00 a.m.

We look up the number for the SPCA, which we find out is still closed. Then we find the number for Animal Control, and they are open! They have Jake in custody! We are SOOOO relieved. Jake's running off was such a negative experience until the animal control officer said, "It will be $17.50 to bail him out, oh and you need proof of his rabies shot." Once the officer said the word bailout, Nathan and I laughed uncontrollably. I mean, how many people have to bail their dog out of "jail"?. Well....now you know someone who has!

Here's what we've been up to...

2008-11-09T19:27:00.000-08:00

Well, it has been a really long time since we've updated the blog. As I probably mentioned earlier, I hate blogging without photographs. It does seem quite elementary to have to have pictures to illustrate my words. I guess that's what happens when a majority of the books I read have illustrations. Just don't get too upset if I also start rhyming (just kidding...I will abstain from rhyming)

Anyway, many of these pictures are from our trip to Virginia in September without Nathan. We have A LOT of pictures, so it might take me a few days to catch up on all of the blogs. I've decided to work my way from the oldest pictures to the most recent, so please be patient.

We celebrated when Addie was finally big enough for her exersaucer. Believe me she really is more happy about it than she looks. She is all smiles until Mom breaks out the camera.

Unfortunately Addie loves Jake a lot more than Jake loves Addie. This is a bit odd because Jake has always desired constant undying attention, which I am sure Addie will give him. Who knew Jake would be so selective with his desire for affection? Hopefully he will grow out of his snobbish behavior soon.

Addie and Daddy at the Burville Cider Mill. The Burville Cider Mill definitely has the best apple cider in Northern New York. Nathan and I frequent the mill quite a bit in the Fall. I'm fairly certain that Addie will grow to love the place too.

Addie was lucky enough to be in Virginia for Aunt Heather's confirmation. After the service she went back to Grandma and Grandpa's and got to meet several family members for the first time. She was a trooper even though she didn't take a single nap. This is Addie with her great grandparents.

Addie in church with Grandma

Addie can't decide if she wants her shirt in her mouth or the toy. Oh the dilemmas of a 4 month old

Addie loves spending time with her Nana

They wanted to go on tour with the Dead. Addie cried when I told her she was a little too late for that one.

Halloween

2008-10-31T17:16:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful Halloween! Nathan went hunting with some of his family in West Virginia. Addie and I joined him after her nap to eat lunch and hang out for a while. Addie got to meet some new family members (as did I), which is always fun for her.

Addie loved the new kittens, and she was surprisingly gentle with them.

We couldn't resist this backdrop, black cat and all.

Late in the afternoon I actually headed back to Virginia so that Addie and Ryn could be together on Halloween. Addie was originally going to be a monkey, but Nathan wasn't all that happy with her costume. So I went out and bought her a dalmatian outfit last minute. She was SOO cute. Later that night I was regretting not dressing up. I really wanted to be Cruella De Ville with my little dalmatian, but it was already too late.

Addie and cousin Ryn

She didn't particularly like her hood.

Ryn, Baba, Addie, and Good Witch Amber (whom I must say had the best costume of the whole night!)

Silly Girl

2008-10-24T17:50:00.000-07:00

These are two pictures taken recently that I couldn't resist taking, and subsequently posting. After coming home one night I was about to carry Addie in the house in her car seat when I found her clutching her bib and her cow. She isn't one for comfort items, so this was particularly amusing.

This next picture was taken one morning before she had awaken. The bumper was only put on her crib when I would come in the nursery and find various body parts sticking out from the slats. Bumpers are SIDS hazards, so I was hesitant to put one on. As it turns out, when Addie wants to stick her limbs out of the crib she will stick them out.

Lake Placid

2008-10-18T17:46:00.000-07:00

We recently took a trip to Lake Placid in the Adirondaks. We had so much fun viewing the fall foliage, and taking in the quaint little town. I must say that the fresh mountian air was one of the best parts. Lake Placid is about 2 1/2 hours from our house, and we were gone all day. Needless to say Addie was an angel the whole day!

Daddy and Addie

Now with Mom

The mountain views were absolutely beautiful

Nathan and Addison standing in front of Mirror Lake

This is the 1980 Olympic Stadium. We just had to go inside seeing that this was the site of the famous hockey game in which U.S. beat U.S.S.R. We were really surprised to find that the stadium was hosting a log cabin expo for the weekend. I think it took away a little bit of the awe factor for us, but we were still very excited to be there.

A Few Updates

2008-10-13T17:28:00.000-07:00

I have been delaying any blogging due to the fact that I have no new pictures to post. Well, actually I have taken a lot of pictures recently, but my camera cord is somewhere in Virginia. Once it is retrieved I will post more pictures than you can imagine. But for now my words will have to do as far as updates go.

Nathan
As many of you know, Nathan has had a very strenuous work schedule lately. For a while he was logging over 80 hours a week. Luckily we found out a week ago that he is being moved up to brigade. For all of you non-military people, a brigade consists of a few thousand soldiers (as opposed to his platoon, which is 20-30 soldiers). He will officially be the Satellite Communications NCO for the whole brigade during their tour in Afghanistan. This is a very positive advancement for him because he has demonstrated superior knowledge of the satellite over all other soldiers in his brigade. Also this move involves considerably less stress than leading a platoon of young soldiers. The only downside to this move is that Nathan is now scheduled to deploy a month sooner than we expected. We are expecting him to leave sometime around November 20th. As most of you already know, everything with the Army is tentative, so this date is definitely subject to change. We have decided that we will just celebrate both Thanksgiving and Christmas early. This was an important decision for Nathan so that he will not technically miss Addie's first holiday season.

Addie
Addie is such a wonderful, happy baby. Nathan and I always comment on how lucky we are to have such a bubbly baby. She recently had her 4 month checkup, and we are being referred to a Pediatric Orthopedic Specialist in Syracuse for a problem with Addie's hip. We have a lot of questions, but our pediatrician will not answer anything, as he wants us only to talk to the specialist. Addie weighed in at 11 lbs 3.5 oz (20th percentile) and was 24.5 inches (50th percentile). The pediatrician wasn't pleased with her weight gain over the past month, and suggested we supplement her feeding with formula. After much contemplation and a second (and third) opinion we have decided to go against his advice. I truly believe that human milk is the absolute best option for her. Not to mention formula usually exacerbates GERD symptoms, which is the reason she had slow weight gain last month. Needless to say we are in the market for a new pediatrician, as our parenting style/philosophy doesn't quite mesh with the current group we are with. Addie is also rolling over in succession. She log rolled halfway across our living room last week. She really wants to crawl and can get up on her legs, but she lacks the upper body strength to push up. I am willing to bet the farm that she will be crawling in a couple months.

Lauren
I am still working hard to lose this last bit of baby weight. I am getting there slowly but surely. I absolutely love spending my days with Addie. I really feel that I am able to enrich her environment, and provide lots of love for her by staying at home with her. Unfortunately I have struggled with balancing caring for her, and being able to do things for myself. Luckily, Nathan has the day off tomorrow and I am getting my haircut for the first time in 4 months. It's a much needed haircut, and a start to being able to finally do things for myself!

Week in Pictures

2008-09-21T15:40:00.000-07:00

Addie and I have a wonderful week in Virginia visiting family. We really miss Nathan, who is working a ton of hours back at Ft. Drum. We can't wait to see him soon. Addie was fortunate to meet many new family members, and she loved hanging out with both sets of grandparents again. Anyways here are some recent pictures.

Addie's goal is to have all 8 fingers in here mouth at once. She didn't quite get them all in in this picture, but she sure was trying. We believe that she is in the process of teething. Of course Nathan said she does everything well before the suggested age markers, and why would this be any different.

Nana insisted that Addie get her picture taken in the begonia bed. Unfortunately Addie wanted to eat the begonias.

Addie's favorite new toy

She loves Aunt Heather and Grandma
Sporting the "Pebbles" look

Fence Pictures

2008-09-09T19:59:00.000-07:00

Nate and Ben mixing cement

My (almost) Before The gate
Everyone loves a power tool
After

Thanks so much team Council/Farley! I also want to say thanks to my mom for cleaning out my attic. I thought I might get in trouble if I posted the pics I have of that though ;) Everyone's help is greatly appreciated. I will be especially thankful when it is below freezing and I am NOT chasing after a curious Jake!!

GERD

2008-09-09T19:07:00.000-07:00

I have been a bad blogger as of late due to the fact that I have been dealing with Addie's first illness. Well, it's actually more of a condition than an illness. That's right, Addie has a condition called GERD (gastro-esophageal reflux disease).

I noticed a couple of weeks ago that she was becoming fussy at meal time. But the real problem started late last Tuesday night when she absolutely refused to nurse. She was arching her back and screaming every time she came close to the breast. Anyone who has spent much time around Addie knows she is very content, which was why this was disheartening. Luckily we had an appointment scheduled Wednesday morning at the pediatrician's office for another round of shots. At the appointment the pediatrician suggested that I give Addie a bottle of expressed milk, and that this was probably just a phase. Needless to say we didn't get any shots that day, and we had another appointment scheduled 2 days later (Friday).

By the time Friday rolled around Addie had not voluntarily nursed in 3 days. I say voluntarily because I was able to get her to latch on when she was really sleepy, and wasn't quite aware of what she was doing. She also snubbed the bottle, which makes perfect sense because she's only taken an ounce from a bottle when she was 8 weeks. At one point I did resort to feeding her from a medicine dropper. I fed her approximately 2 ounces from a 2 milliliter medicine dropper. For all you math whizzes, that equals a really long time to get 2 ounces down the hatch.

At the appointment on Friday morning the pediatrician told me much of the same (i.e., just a phase, try the bottle). Addie dropped half an ounce between Wednesday and Friday. This was not enough to worry about from a medical standpoint, but as a mother I was definitely concerned. I was also told that Addie would be put in the hospital for observation on Monday if she was still not eating or gaining weight. At this point I was desperate to get her nursing and feeling better. My motherly instincts told me there was more to this than Addie being stubborn.

I knew the best place to go right after the appointment was to see my favorite lactation consultant at the hospital. Sure enough, after 5 minutes of observing me trying to nurse Addie she informed me that Addie had reflux. That's right folks, the lactation figured the problem out in 5 minutes. In the meantime she gave me some suggestions on easing Addie's pain. She also wrote me a note and told me to drive right back to the pediatrician. Approximately 30 minutes later Addie had her first prescription.

The Zantac seems make Addie feel better, but she still has a slight aversion to eating. Luckily for Addie the best treatment for GERD is breastmilk. It is very easily digested, and it has anti-inflamatory properties. I am confident that things will be much better for her in the coming weeks.

Lessons learned from this experience:

Lactation consultants are a godsend. What a priceless resource!
Doctors don't know everything
A mother will truly do anything to ease their child's pain.
Nothing hurts a mother more than to not be able to ease their child's discomfort.
I truly cherish the nursing relationship I have with my daughter.

Labor Day Weekend

2008-09-02T18:01:00.000-07:00

Well, our weekend task of installing a fence in our backyard is complete, thanks to the tremendous help from my mom, dad, and Ben. I will post more pictures at a later date as my camera battery died, and most of the pictures are on my parent's camera. We are so thankful for their help.

Also, Addie turned 3 months old on Saturday. I can't believe she has been with us for 3 months. She is such a wonderful baby. Her coordination is developing rapidly. She is now able to grasp toys with both hands. She can also roll from her back to her side (not quite to the tummy). As you remember she could get from her tummy to her back weeks ago. I believe its not too long before the roll is a full 360 degrees. I look forward to posting our fence pictures soon.

Addie's 3 month picture

Uneventfulness

2008-08-28T17:54:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of posts over the past week. We've actually had a pretty uneventful week. Nathan has been working really long hours. Addie and I have been going about with our normal routine. On Wednesdays we love to walk to the farmer's market. Addie and I meet up with friends and we camp out in front of the library so Addie and Will can play. We also go to a breastfeeding moms playgroup on Fridays, which is a lot of fun.

We are looking forward to my parents coming up over the long weekend. We have big plans, which include building a fence, taking out our back deck, repairing and painting our foundation, and who knows what else. We're also looking forward to celebrating Addie's 3 month birthday on Saturday! We're planning on getting her 3 month portrait taken sometime in the next week or so, so watch your mailboxes this month for new pictures!!

These are just some random pictures I have taken this week.

I just had to take a picture of Addie's first time with dirty feet. We were playing in the grass and she just kept kicking her feet so hard into the ground. She loves to kick those feet really fast and hard. She actually had another first this week...her first knot in her hair. It was pretty bad and I debated cutting it out, but I knew I had to try to untangle it before whipping out the scissors. Luckily I was able to distract her with a rattle while I worked the knot out. Disaster averted.

Roll Over Beethoven

2008-08-19T08:55:00.000-07:00

Addie is now a rolly polly. As I announced a couple of weeks ago she discovered she could roll over when Nathan was playing with her. I wasn't really expecting her to consistently roll over for at least a few more weeks. Well, it seems as if she takes great pride in performing this new skill. Maybe she's been watching the Olympics a little too much (joking...no TV for this youngster). Last week she got virtually no tummy time since we had family here, but yesterday afternoon she whipped right over for me. Of course when I retrieved the camera to film her new acrobatics she was over it. After trying to film her rolling over on 4 different occasions, I finally got it!

Also, it seems as if Jake has taken a keen interest in Addie. He was a bit indifferent to her at first, but now he wants to be wherever she is. I even caught him napping beside the crib as she slumbered. Oh the joy!

Addie gave me a nice big burp right before she rolled. So funny!

What a week

2008-08-18T07:50:00.000-07:00

What a week we've had. We were sad to see all of the Farley's leave on Saturday. Addie really enjoyed meeting her Grandpa, Grandma (again), aunt and uncle. I think that Addie was held by someone the whole week (except for when she was sleeping and riding in the car). The week passed by extremely fast, which always seems to be the case when you are having a great time. Anyhow, I've included pictures from the past couple of days. Nathan pointed out that there was no picture of me in the last post , so I was sure to include one here ;)

Sacketts Harbor Brew Pub

Addie looking at herself in the mirror
Jake enjoys tummy time too

Sittin on the dock of the bay

2008-08-11T09:52:00.000-07:00

We had such a wonderful weekend at Henderson Harbor with the family! Check out the pictures!

Addie's first boat ride

Addie's first time in the lake

Yup, that's Nathan

So many kisses...

And lots of attention

Grandma made Addie a hat and sweater!

The cute girls always get to sit in the front of the boat

New Friends

2008-08-07T09:11:00.000-07:00

I just had to post some pictures of Addie in her tie-dyed onsie that her Uncle Ben gave her. It's probably one of the cutest things she's ever worn. Sorry about the really bad red-eye. I am working on eliminating it, but can't figure out what is wrong.

We have good news to report: Addison is now sleeping through the night (for the most part). Three nights out of the past 5 she's slept 7 hours. The first night this happened Nathan woke me up around 3:30 a.m. inquiring if she had woken up yet. I was absolutely shocked when I saw the glowing numbers on the clock. Keep your fingers crossed for us that Addie will keep this up, as we all wake up bright eyed and bushy tailed when she sleeps for a 7 hour stretch. I believe that she might be ready to sleep in her own room soon. Although, I am not so sure that Nathan and I are ready for this monumental change.

Also, within the past week she has discovered how awesome her hands are. She plays and stares at them, and it seems that she is amazed by what they can do. Oh to be a baby! Addie has really made me slow down and enjoy the small pleasures of life. She finds the greatest joy in looking at a leaf, or a face, or anything for that matter. I think that most adults can take a lesson from babies by simply stopping and enjoying their surroundings. Take it all in.

I've also included a video of Addie playing with her new friends on her bouncy seat. A few weeks ago she had no interest in playing or looking at them, but now she loves them. She even carries on conversations with them as you will see. They entertain her for about 10 minutes, which is just long enough for me to eat breakfast (unless I'm filming the antics of my adorable daughter).

Round 2

2008-08-05T18:33:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the delay since the last blog. I was having trouble uploading pictures for awhile, and I believe that the pictures are some people's favorite part of the blog. Anyhow, since the last blog Addison celebrated her 2 month birthday! Nathan and I celebrated her birthday in the same tradition as the first (by giving her a new book).

Her growth in the last month has been absolutely phenomenal. She has not only grown in size, but also has made leaps in the development of her large motor skills and mental development. She actually rolled over 3 times the other morning! We were so proud of her. She hasn't done rolled over again. I don't really expect her to be consistent with this skill, as it usually doesn't happen until close to the 4th month for most babies. Over the past month we have also really seen the emergence of Addison's personality (so sweet with a little kick of feisty).

At her 2 month pediatrician appointment she weighed in at 10lbs 2 oz, and was 22.5 inches long. She also got vaccinated, which she was not a big fan of (poor baby). Her are some pictures taken this past week.

2 months

I love the way my arm tastes!

Baba, Ben, and the Piggies

2008-07-27T13:32:00.000-07:00

Addie finally got to meet Baba and Uncle Ben this past Friday! We were lucky enough to have them spend the night here at our house on their way to Canada for a fishing trip. Addie got to see and touch her first real beard, and she got lots of kisses from Baba. Mostly though, Addie was all eyes for Ben. She stared at him intently for minutes on end (a lot longer than she does most people). We also got treated to a wonderful dinner (thanks guys!), and were oh so sad to see them leave so soon. I just hope that the fish are biting for them this week.

Addie and Ben

The other exciting news is that Addie has pigtails!!! Nathan and I were so entertained by her Cindy Lou Who-esque hair style (as if you couldn't tell huh?) The best news is that she is content to let us play with her hair, so there will definitely be more piggies in the future!

This is our first time adding a video to the blog. Addie has been "talking" a lot lately. Her new vocal skills are so cute, and I wanted other people to hear them as well. Please forgive the TV in the background. The Law & Order SVU episode sounds much louder on the video than it did in person, but you will get the general idea behind her coos.

America's Next Top Baby

2008-07-25T06:51:00.000-07:00

I'm sure that every parent thinks their baby is cute, but our baby really truly is the cutest! She draws a crowd everywhere we go. Not only is she cute, but she's got a wonderful personality too. We should probably be considering a move to Lake Wobegon soon. Anyways, here are some of the reasons we think she is too cute for her own good....

Now please excuse me while I go eat a piece of humble pie.

Our Roof is Done!

2008-07-18T18:23:00.000-07:00

As you may already know, we have been waiting to get a new roof since late spring. Well, I am happy to say that all the work is finally complete! It is an improvement that was well worth the wait an the rather large chunk of change that came out of our savings account. Anyone who has been to our house knows that our roof was the biggest eyesore. The roofers had to completely strip off the old roof because there were up to 6 layers of shingles. New York state law only allows 3 layers of shingles. Needless to say the roofers had their work cut out for them. The roofers started working late last week and finished up on Wednesday. Nate, Addie, and I almost got used to all the banging, and having a bunch of sweaty guys hanging around our house. With that said, you can see the vast improvement for yourself (sorry, but I took the pictures in the evening when the sun was behind the house...oops)

BEFORE

AFTER

I guess it wouldn't be a true blog without some mention/picture of Addie. I can proudly say that she now smiles on a regular basis, and it is truly heart melting. She definitely has her daddy and I wrapped around her little finger. Yesterday she attended her first birthday party. Our good friend's son, Peyton, turned 5. We had a great time, and of course Addie got way too much attention from everyone (after the birthday boy of course!). Nathan and I were very excited because she is now able to wear clip in bows in her hair. We had to get a picture of Addie's first party, and we really wanted to get her with the birthday boy. Unfortunately, neither Peyton nor Addie really wanted to have their picture taken together. See for yourself....

Peyton and Addie

She's Official

2008-07-16T18:13:00.000-07:00

Addison is now an official Army brat! She recieved her official welcome into Nathan's unit, 3BSTB, this past week. Lt Col Pitt sent her a letter congratulating her arrival, and welcoming her into the Vanguard family. Along with the letter all new Vanguard babies born recieve a monogramed blanket. It's a very nice gift that will always remind Addie of her early days in the 1oth Mountain Division.

Addie with her new blanket

HOOAH!

Say Cheese!

2008-07-14T11:50:00.000-07:00

Addie has added a new skill to her repertoire. She can now smile. She has been flashing us her gummy grins for a couple weeks now. We first noticed little grins a couple weeks ago when we would stroke her cheek or rub her head softly. Then, she slowly started to the corners of her mouth up more often. At first we were not quite sure if she was flashing a true social smile, or practicing using her facial muscles. Now we know she is truly smiling, and it is so cute! Addie gets to "talk" to Daddy on the phone everyday when he is working. Well, this morning I put the phone up to her ear and when Nate started talking she smiled her largest smile yet. It is hard to catch her smiles since she doesn't smile on command yet, but here is our first try...
What a big girl!

Until next time,
The Farleys

The Week in Pictures

2008-07-12T12:34:00.000-07:00

These are just some pictures from this week.

Playtime

Crazy nap hair

Ain't life grand?!

Tub time

Deployments to Diapers...

2008-07-08T09:00:00.001-07:00

As many of you know, Nathan and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary on July 4th! We had a wonderful day, and we were very excited to have another person to celebrate with us. We can't really believe its been 5 years already. Although it often seems as if time is passing at a break-necking speed, it also feels like we've been married much longer. We've been through a lot in the past 5 years, and I am happy to say that there is no one I would rather be on this journey with other than Nathan. If someone would have told me what lie ahead 5 years ago I would truly have been in disbelief. We've survived 2 deployments (one rather LONG one I must say), buying our first house, all of Nathan's promotions (there have been a lot I must say), me finishing college, buying a new vehicle (sigh), and the birth of our wonderful baby girl. And to think that these are just the big milestones we've been through. Even though we've seen our fair share of stressful at times, we've always had a great life together. So... I thought I would do then & now pictures.

THEN

NOW

Addie relaxing before the fireworks

More relaxing
Hanging out with Mom
What a family!

One Month

2008-06-30T18:10:00.000-07:00

Today is Addison's one month birthday! Nathan and I have enjoyed every single moment of Addie's life so far. She is incredibly easy to fall in love with, and I know we couldn't have asked for a better baby. My first inclination was to be sad over how incredibly fast this past month has flown by. Afterall, she is now one month closer to her 18th birthday, and leaving the wonderful nest we've created for her (faulty logic I know, but the thought still occurs nonetheless). A few days ago I decided that instead of being sad I was going to throw Addie a one month party. Nathan and I bought Addie a book to mark this special occasion, and we also celebrated with cupcakes.

Addie with her present

Addie's new book

Already a bookworm!

Cupcakes for our little cupcake

Addie's first Airshow

2008-06-29T15:01:00.000-07:00

Lauren and Addie watching the airshow

Me and Addie checking out the inside of a c-5
Addie Learns to fly a UH-60 Helicopter
Addie decided she wanted to stay on the ground a while longer
Lauren, Addie and I in front of a B-25 WWII bomber

Well today we took Addie to her first Airshow. Ft. Drum was holding a big centennial celebration with an airshow this year, and Addie just had to go. Addie watched the stunt planes and Ariel performers for seconds on end. And then of course we went to the car for some much needed milk. It turned out to be a good thing because the F-18 took off and the engine noise scared Addie a little bit. But soon enough we were back on the airfield and Addie learned to fly a UH-60 but then quickly learned that she was afraid of heights and wanted out of the helicopter quickly. Addie then wanted to get her picture taken with the B-25 bomber that was flying around in the airshow that took part in battle in WWII. All in all Addie had a great day out, and so did we.

Just to keep everyone posted Addie is doing great, and her motor control is getting better everyday. Her hair is getting thicker and longer as the weeks go by and is showing no sign of falling out. We have also noticed a tendency for her hair to curl, so she may have curly hair who knows. This past week was my first week back to work and it was hard on me leaving Addie, and it was hard on Addie and Lauren as well. It seems that when the three of us are together she has one sleeping pattern during the day and when I'm at work she has another. Tomorrow we celebrate Addie's first month of life, and I for one can't believe that she is already one month old. Well I will write more later. Take care.

5000 Words

2008-06-26T16:24:00.000-07:00

I've heard that a picture is worth a thousand words.

Picnic in Sacketts Harbor

Addie's post-lunch nap in Sacketts
Addie
Maddie
Addie and I playing this morning

Swings and so forth..

2008-06-19T08:50:00.000-07:00

So far we have had a great week in the Farley household! Addie is doing well, and growing every single day. She weighed in at 6 lbs 11 oz at her 2 week checkup on Monday. That is a full pound heavier than her birthweight! The most surprising part of her weight gain was that I weighed her 3 days before (on Friday) and she was 6 lbs 5 oz. Holy moly, we couldn't believe that she gained 6 oz in 3 days. The average baby gains 4 oz a week, so she is definitely an overachiever at this point. It's amazing the things that excite you when you become a parent. We also bought Addie a swing with the gift card that my Aunt Daphne and Uncle Doug sent for Addie. We thought she might enjoy a swing since she LOVES riding in the stroller and the car. Well, it turns out that we were right! Addie loves to swing, but she will only allow us to keep the swing on the highest setting. She is such a little whipper-snapper!

Addie in her new swing

Father's Day

2008-06-15T15:18:00.000-07:00

Addie Daddy and Jake

Me and Jake taking in the sights
Me and my favorite Girl
My two favorite Girls
My Girls

Well this is my first Father's Day and my first post on the blog, so as is common in the Farley house these days it's another day of first's. First off my Baby girl has a belly button, and she is getting cuter by the day. Her alert periods are getting more common and she is a lot more active everyday. She is able to hold her head up for longer and longer periods everyday it is really amazing. She still isn't much of a crier, and she still hasn't cried for longer then 30 seconds yet. Addie just seems to cry just enough to get her point across, and then she stops. Her eyes have turned a dark dark blue with just a hint of another color in the center like Lauren's eyes. In the two weeks that we have had Addie home she has gained almost a pound and now weighs 6 pounds 5 oz. and yet she still seems so little. It's sad to think that in just a few short months she won't be so little anymore.

Well I for one had a great father's day. To start it off Daddy and Addie get up while mom was sleeping and snuck downstairs for some early morning video games and some father daughter bonding all rolled into one. Once Laur was up she and Addie fixed me some french toast for breakfast. We all went to Thompson park in the afternoon to enjoy the beautiful day (even Jake although we debated not taking him, but we where glad we brought him along in the end). For my first Father's Day Addie got me a picture frame with a our names engraved on it to remember our first father's day. All throughout our time in the park Addie was asleep, she seems to love to get out, and she is great as long as we keep her moving. We couldn't ask for a better baby. For the most part she seems to keep pretty close to every 3 hours between feedings.

Lauren is doing extremly well, and surprises me everyday with how well she is doing. Today we walked up one of the really steep hills at the park, (her pushing the stroller) and she almost ran up the hill with ease.

We are all doing well and we will Keep you updates.

Addison Claire Farley

2008-06-04T07:12:00.000-07:00

It's a girl!! We are pleased to announce that Addison Claire Farley arrived May 30th at 10:50 a.m. weighing in at 5 lbs. 11 oz.! She is a complete and utter joy. Nathan and I could not be happier. Addie is sleeping and eating well, and has overcome jaundice. Pictures of her birth are posted below.

Lauren before induction Addie right after birth
Dr. Silva (left) and nurse Toni
Daddy and Addie
Addie on the warming table

37 Weeks

2008-05-19T18:28:00.001-07:00

Today marks our 37th week of pregnancy! This is an exciting milestone because we know that Junebug (or JB as we usually call "it") is fully "cooked". All of the baby's systems are fully developed, and now we are just waiting for JB to decide when he/she wants to leave their uterine home. I've told JB numerous times today that eviction is eminent within the next 4 weeks, and he/she really needs to think about moving on out. Of course we all know that babies have their own agenda when it comes to heading out. Nathan really thinks that JB will be an early bird, but I am a skeptic. This is not to say that I would mind if JB came a week or two early, but I know the baby is way too comfortable nestling his/her feet up in my ribs.

Aside from the approximately 6 and a half pound human that I'm carrying around 24/7 I've been feeling great. After all of the horror stories that have been recounted to me about the last few weeks of pregnancy I must admit I was a little nervous. So far I still have energy, and very few aches and pains. Don't get me wrong, it's definitely harder to move around, roll over in bed at night, get in and out of the car, etc. but these are just minor annoyances I've learned to cope with. I've included a 37 week belly picture. Hopefully this will help you understand why JB is going to be evicted soon. The bambino is definitely running out of space.
Until next time...
The Farleys

Introducing....

2008-05-10T19:42:00.000-07:00

We have avoided posting a blog for quite some time now. Unfortunately there are many excuses for our procrastination. Setting up a family blog is always something that we have put on next week's to-do list, which subsequently gets moved to next month's list. I must admit intimidation has also factored heavily into the delay of starting a blog. I am sure everyone has read the blogs containing deep insight, heavy thinking, and the pondering of some great social issue. All we really want is to share minor family happenings (with the occasional insightful thought of course). Plus, maintaining a blog takes commitment (sigh).

In any case, with Nathan and I awaiting the birth of our baby we've decided to stop procrastinating and start chronicling our adventures! With family members scattered far away (literally worldwide), and friends that are constantly being relocated by the Army we decided we needed a new way to keep in touch with people. So, here we are!
The Farleys