Feels Like Home

Maybe it's because the Army is about to uproot us again, but more and more lately I've been feeling like this place is home. It's not where I grew up, and I never intended to live here. It just sort of happened. 

When we moved here, I was pretty set against buying a house. I didn't see the point, even if Joe would end up getting out after his enlistment period. He always talks about moving back to NC, so it really just didn't seem smart to me. For several reasons, one being I trust my husband's judgement, I decided to let go. On our second round of looking at houses, I fell in love. It wasn't perfect, but it had good potential, most of the things on my 'wish list', and a nice backyard. 

I still stinking love our porch.

This is about half of the backyard.

Though I haven't done a whole lot in the way of decorating in this house (thanks mostly to pregnancy exhaustion and chasing a toddler), I still have a lot of ideas rolling around in my head about what I really want this place to look like. Some things we've done, and others are yet to come. Getting Joe's shop built a few weeks ago helped get a lot of things out of the house, and we also sold some stuff and gave some furniture back to family. (We got a ton of furniture handed down from family when we got married. It was awesome, but we've either outgrown it (goodbye, full size bed) or simply decided to downsize our stuff.)

Joe in his half-finished shop.

I also really love where we live. We don't live in a subdivision, but I like our cozy little neighborhood. We're 5 minutes from everything we need (WalMart, Walgreens, CVS, McDonald's, Dominos, Bojangles...Mexican food....okay, any food) and 15 minutes from post. All my other favorite shops and restaurants are about 20 minutes away, as are our doctors. I know my way around, and have even found a few shortcuts. 

We've only been here a year and a half, but it feels like home. It feels like home, and I don't want to leave. We have a pretty good support system, a church we love, I really enjoy our PWOC, the girls and I have the best doctors, and this house doesn't just feel like a house. 

Maybe it's because we moved here with no intentions of leaving within 3 years. We planned on staying a while, so I let myself create a sense of home. Now that I have, the Army threatens to uproot us once again. And I find myself thinking all the time.... please don't make me leave.

Picnics in the backyard are our fave.

Jams for a Cause

We interrupt this unintentional blogging break to bring you news about a JAMazing fundraiser.

Several years ago, I worked for a restaurant that did fundraising for St. Jude and almost I instantly developed a heart for this hospital and all the great work they do for children and their families. Since September is Childhood Cancer Awareness month, I thought it only appropriate to do a fundraiser now. 

Some info about Jamberry Nails, in case you are unfamiliar with the product:

Jamberry Nails are a new and innovative way to avoid nail polish drying time, chipping, and pricey visits to the salon. They are a DIY DREAM come true! They last up to 2 weeks on fingernails, 6 weeks on toenails and WILL NOT CHIP. They are a vinyl adhesive wrap that is heat activated and pressure sealed to the nail. They will NOT damage your nail when removed properly. They are so much fun! You will love them!

How will this work? First, you purchase the sheet(s) of nail wraps you love from my website. At checkout, select “St. Jude Fundraiser.” At the end of this month, I will donate 10% of all sales from the fundraiser to St. Jude. Easy peasy, right?! Please help me donate as much as possible to this great cause by purchasing nail wraps that you already love and enjoy, and inviting your friends as well!

I'm running this fundraiser on my personal Facebook page, as well as here and other social media. I had first thought to just extend the giveaway to people on my Facebook, but I thought I would share it with you, too! When sales reach $200, I will select one person to win Jamberry's brand new Mini Heater. It was just released this month, and I kinda think it's cute. ;-) 

To earn points/entries into the giveaway, all you have to do is make a purchase! {Comment and invite entries are only available to those participating in my Facebook event. Sorry!}

As I said earlier, this fundraiser will be open through the end of the month. If sales reach $200 (and I really, really, really hope they do!), I will choose the winner of the Mini Heater on Oct. 1 and announce it all over social media. Stay tuned! 

Thanks in advance for helping me give to this organization I love and appreciate so much!

Happy Monday!

8 Months of Millie

Geez, you guys. How is my itty bitty baby already 8 months old? How is she sitting up, babbling, and crawling. Like...when did this happen?! Where did my squishy newborn go?!

I can't believe it's gone so fast. The first few months of her little life were not easy, that's for sure. And I know there were days I longed for us to be at this place already. But somewhere between the "someone save me" days and the "I think we're doing okay" days, time sped up and here we are.

Bam. Just like that - 8 months old. Although I miss her squishy little newborn self, I absolutely love seeing her little personality come out. She is too much fun! She's quite a bit more reserved than Charlotte is, but sometimes I think that's just because she's watching Charlotte. When it's just her and I in the afternoon (while big sis is sleeping), she does tend to be pretty vocal.

She is giggly, but only when she wants to be. Which is usually when she's one-on-one with me or Joe. It's really hard to get a giggle out of her if she's got everyone's attention. Sometimes I think she's going to be a little more like me, in that she kind of needs time to come around to new people/situations. She also doesn't like to be held 24/7 - she needs her space.

She's been sitting like a champ for....a while now. I have no idea when she actually started being able to sit up on her own. I was propping her up with the boppy for a while...and then I noticed she was sort of sitting up in the bouncy seat one day. And then I just kind of sat her on the couch after feeding her, and....what do you know? She could sit up! So much different than with Charlotte, haha! Funny how you stress less over these things with the second baby.

She's also doing things like this now - sitting up in bed, playing, waiting for me to get her up from a nap. And sometimes she'll do something crazy like pull up on her knees. Stop it, kid. I'm not ready for that just yet.

Oh, and? She crawls now. It was fun to see her learn to do this. I don't really remember when Charlotte learned how to crawl. With her, it was like one day she'd just lay on her tummy on the floor, and the next she was crawling. Millie, however, would get up on all fours, rock, and then launch herself. Then, she'd end up sort of scooting backward. Last week, she started sort of crawling. She'd get her knees under her, put one forward, and then fall down. (It was kind of funny....ha!) And then, this past weekend something just clicked and she was off! It's been so fun to see her get mobile, although I will admit I have to keep a closer eye on her and other things now.

One of my most favorite things is seeing how the bond between my two girlies has grown and changed. It's not always easy or fun (for me or them), but they love each other so much already. Charlotte has always been concerned about Millie. When Millie cries, Charlotte has always made sure that she has what she needed. In the beginning, it was me or a pacifier, then Charlotte started bringing her all of her toys. And now, Charlotte will pat her on the back, and give her a hug and a kiss. Millie loves playing with Charlotte. She has always been able to get the biggest smiles out of Millie. And now that they can play together, she is all kinds of happy!

Of course, it doesn't always go well... Sometimes Charlotte will take a toy from Millie, or Millie will pull Charlotte's hair or something. But that's really just part of it. Now that Millie is mobile, I feel like they are closer. They can play together, sit in the floor and watch cartoons, have a tea party... You name it. It's really one of the sweetest things ever.

I wasn't sure if we'd ever be able to adjust to having two babies there in the beginning.... And now? Well, I'm not sure what we'd be doing without this cute, smiley baby!

We love you, sweet Millie-girl! I hope you're always as sweet and happy as you are now. :*