The Rice's

Great Wolf Lodge

2013-05-25T10:14:00.001-07:00

We had a nice little getaway last weekend to Great Wolf Lodge in Williamsburg, VA with some friends. Sophia LOVED it, but I think Tim loved it even more. We all rode water slides and spent half of the time in the wave pool. At 8pm every evening they have "story time" for the kids with an interactive forest scene of racoons, a talking tree, etc. Stephanie and I got massages Monday morning (thanks to our husbands for watching the kids). It was a blast and a much needed getaway.

An indoor water park is ingenious, really, especially for fair skinned folk like Sophia and me that don't mesh well with the sun! We plan to visit again around Christmas time.

Picture Overload

Sophia and Emma take a juice box break

2 New Favs!

2013-02-17T15:51:00.001-08:00

I have 2 new favorite things I wanted to share. And the third picture is obviously my favorite girl. :)

STEAMER!

It's sooo easy...throw your fresh veggies in, set your timer, and come back in 20 min or so to eat up! You can also steam meats and potatoes. So easy and efficient. Thanks mom!

JUICER!

I recently watched an awesome documentary that sparked my interest in and new love for my juicer. It's quick and easy. The hardest part is actually peeling the oranges! Too easy. Tim, Sophia, and I are all loving the fresh juices I have been making almost daily. Below, Sophia helped me juice a simple combo of tomatoes and oranges. So refreshing!

BEST GIRLFRIEND!

Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree

2013-01-14T14:50:00.002-08:00

Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree...

As usual, i'm so behind on posting. My one and only new year's resolution is be be better about updating our blog. It's not Feb. yet, so I think I'm doing alright, :).

This year for Christmas we decided to get a real tree for the first time (our previous fake tree was thrown away without my consent by my husband during our move to the city), but that's beside the point. He practically begged for a fake tree, so I gave in. My only condition was that I wanted a REALLY tall one, because our ceilings are super high (or so I thought).

The night that Sophia and I returned from our trip to Texarkana (Dec. 11), we marched on down to the Christmas tree farm about 5 blocks away. It was actually a random parking lot where they brought trees in to sell. Tim insisted that he CARRY it home, which I thought was obviously insane. So, I may or may not have picked the biggest one in the lot. To my credit, they look smaller outside. I scream laughed the entire walk home as Sophia and I followed! BTW, Tim totally DRAGGED it across the street at the very end. SEE BELOW:

I'm not sure if you can tell exactly how big it was from the pictures, but it was HUGE! We re-lived Christmas Vacation during that outing. It was hilarious.

Happy Halloween!

2012-10-31T20:27:00.000-07:00

ZooBoo and Trick-or-Treating

Last Friday was "wear your costume to the zoo day" also known as ZooBoo. They had a fall festival set up where kids could tick-or-treat at different booths and play games before seeing all the animals. So fun! Sophia and I went with my friend Sarah and her kids (Sophia's best buddies) Owen, Ian, and Alex. I snapped tons from the Zoo and lots tonight of Sophia trick-or-treating in our neighborhood. I think Tim had the most fun..you'll see why.

We had a great Halloween!

Sophia Hayden turned 2!

2012-05-13T08:56:00.001-07:00

Sophia had her big party at the National Aquarium in Baltimore. Thanks to all those that came and made it so special! A special thanks to Uncle Dave.

Flower Girl and Bridesmaid!!!

2012-04-02T08:02:00.000-07:00

Happy New Year

2012-01-01T14:14:00.000-08:00

I am back to the blogging world. My facebook will be deactivated by the end of the day, for several reasons; one being that i'm starting 2 more graduate courses Jan. 10th, and need to have as much focus as possible. Also, I want to keep of with this blog as sort of a diary for Sophia. We can all look back at this blog when she is older, and she can see exactly how wild she was as a baby, and why her parents have grey hair at an early age, haha!

Tim, Sophia, and I are enjoying the New Year in Reston, VA with our wonderful friend David, or as Sophia calls him, "Uncle Dave".

Reston is an adorable little upscale community, with a very cute downtown. I fell in love with it.

We went to lunch downtown, and met a few friends along the way.

Sophia had a blast, but was pretty trying in the restaurant (i had to get my food to go). But, luckily she is sleeping peacefully in Uncle Dave's room, and we get to be adults for a few minutes. lol.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! WE LOVE YOU ALL!

Too much to type

2011-09-06T18:38:00.000-07:00

Soo much is going on in our lives, but there is way too much to type. So, you can gather from the pictures that we are doing great! P.S. Sophia will be 16 months in 5 days...hellloooo....oh. my.gosh. I will try to type an update on the goings-on in the lives of the Rice clan, soon.

Here we go,

Revolving around Sophia, our Angel.

HP are you with me!

2011-08-05T07:09:00.000-07:00

And so my reading journey of Harry Potter has begun. I don't like fantasy, or much fiction really, but i'm totally into HP. I am starting the 3rd book today...Prisoner of Azkaban. Sooo excited! After finishing my 4th graduate course, I decided to take a LONG break. I will pick up my 5th course before next April (or i will be dropped from my program). But this break is sooo nice...I can actually read for pleasure, instead of a textbook. And not to mention, waay less stress on me. My goal is to read each book in 1 week...so far so good.

We have had several visitors the past couple of weeks, which was great! We love having visitors...mainly because it makes us "deep clean" our entire house, haha!

Sophia is doing great...eating and sleeping so well, and is sooo happy during the day. She understands so much spanish too, it's adorable. She is soo much fun! Real estate is going really well for me, and Tim starts law school in 2 weeks! Busy, busy, busy our household will be

Preparing for Law School

2011-07-25T18:00:00.000-07:00

Tim here... How goes it everyone..?

By "preparing for law school," I more closely mean "figuring out the best way to commute to downtown Baltimore while considering parking fees, gasoline, valuable time, safety, etc." So, on this rainy, melancholy day, I decided to try the Light Rail. For those unfamiliar with public transit mechanisms, Light Rail is basically a subway above ground. Like cable cars but faster?? I don't know... Anyway, I drove 15 minutes to the airport (BWI), the nearest Light Rail station to our house. As soon as I exited the car, I saw the train approaching. Should I rush through the large drops of windy rain, leaving my book bag and umbrella and try to make it before the doors slam on and embarrass me? Nah. I'll just catch the next one because surely it'll be here soon. After all, I don't feel like getting wet, and today is just a trial run.

THIRTY MINUTES LATER....!!!! ..the next train approaches. I'm kicking myself for not rushing to the previous train. I've now spent 45 minutes on my commute and I'm not even halfway to my destination. Had I driven, I would have been there in under 30. Okay, that's fine. NOT gonna lose my patience yet. Mind you, I was thinking all along that the trip to my stop (University Center/Baltimore Street) would take no more than 15 minutes. I'm used to my route in DC that took me from Union Station to Dupont Circle- five minutes. So, it turns out, my route from BWI to University Center takes a standard, whopping THIRTY-TWO MINUTES. No way, Jose. There's no point in this. I finally make it to my stop, after 32 minutes of dodging rain drops falling from the stellar ceiling above. Now I must walk to my building. No trouble there. I enjoyed not having to drive through downtown traffic and hopelessly find a parking spot, then resort to paying $8 in a parking garage. Never mind the fact that the 10 minute walk to the school brought my one-way commute to a striking one hour and twenty-seven minutes. (pardon me while this thought and the germs from the train make me vomit)

So I did my business at the university, dodging the tourists, homeless people, doctors, nurses and other professionals to drop off some paperwork at the Law School. Now I'm headed back to the Light Rail station, having no idea when the next train will show up. But I'm in luck this time! As soon as I turn the corner of Baltimore and S Howard, the train met me at a slow speed coming to a stop just 10 feet ahead. YES! I get to cut down 30 minutes of wait time on my way home!

WRONG. I mistakenly got on the wrong train - the route which bypasses BWI altogether - and found myself in Glenn Burnie, staring at the map and reflecting how stupid I am. Who knew that two different routes went through my station?? Well, apparently everyone but me. What happens next? You guessed it. Thirty minutes of waiting, sitting in my seat until the train took off in the opposite direction. After two stops I deboard, wait 10 minutes for the BWI train, board, spend 10 minutes en route, then finally reach my car. Fifteen minutes later, I round off a return trip which was supposed to beat the first trip but instead lasted an hour and forty-five mintues, 18 minutes longer.

Suffice it to say that beginning Aug 22nd, I'm leaning towards driving to class.

Awesome gadget

2011-07-25T16:05:00.000-07:00

I am reading again! I forgot about this gadget for awhile, because I have had NO time to read. Now, I have some free time, and my trusty kindle serves me perfectly.

Busy, busy, busy

2011-07-18T11:25:00.000-07:00

I. have. been. so. busy. But it's good! Tim has been staying home with Sophia for the past week...which has really helped save money on babysitting. I have worked the past 7 days in a row, and I'm pretty beat. But that's the name of the game in real estate....no 8-5, monday through friday. But I love it!

And what has made this easier is Sophia's new sleeping habits (crossing fingers not to jinx it!). She has been sleeping around 13 hours straight..thank the Lord! 7:30-8:45 or 8-9ish. Last night was about 8-8. I never thought this day would come. I finally feel rested. Let's keep it up, Sophia Hayden!

Helping daddy wash the car

or just pouring the soap and water out

Nature's Raw Guarana- A Natural Energy Boost

2011-07-12T07:29:00.000-07:00

An awesome Herbalife product for those that want to cut back on the coffee a bit, but still depend on engery boosts throughout the day.

Get a natural pick-me-up from N-R-G. It is infused with guarana, an ancient, Amazonian seed with properties similar to caffeine. N-R-G boosts your energy naturally, while helping improve your mental alertness. This also comes in a tea that you can drink hot or cold.

You can order this at www.shopherbalife.com/hrice. It is $15.95 for a bottle of 60 tablets.

Email me if you have any questions- haleigh.rice1@gmail.com

I'm 14 months today!

Pictures

2011-07-10T07:49:00.000-07:00

Sophia LOVES playing outside...she already cries and throws a fit when it's time to come in. She would sleep outside if we let her.

I couldn't pick a favorite.....

A new venture

2011-07-07T07:27:00.000-07:00

If you know me well, then you understand how little extra time I have to put towards anything new. I am a real estate agent AND a full time mom. Tim and I switch out...when he gets home, I go to work...so that way we don't have to pay out babysitter too often. BUT, I came across something that I could not pass up. I will make time for this, because this is to better my health, my family's health, and to help others do the same. (...and please note the pictures of Sophia are for your entertainment...) HA!

I'm sure many of you have heard of HERBALIFE, but you may not realize how amazing the products are. Tim's brother and sister-in-law, Ben and Kacey, actually introduced us to Herbalife's products when we visited them in Orlando, and over the past month I have become a believer in its health benefits.

The Company:

Herbalife a global nutrition company that has helped people pursue a healthy, active life since 1980. Their nutrition, weight-management and personal care products are available exclusively through the more than 2.1 million independent Distributors in 75 countries.

They support the Herbalife Family Foundation (HFF) and its Casa Herbalife program to help bring good nutrition to children in need. Herbalife also sponsors world-class athletes, teams and events around the globe, including the LA Galaxy, FC Barcelona soccer clubs, and more.

The focus of the company:

The main focus of Herbalife is a personalized nutrition plan for each individual based upon his/her particular goals. There is literally something for everyone- even babies and children. Whether you are looking to lose weight, maintain your weight, gain weight, or just gain more energy and improve your overall health, there are products for each plan. And the basis of these plans are Herbalife's Nutritional Shakes. These shakes are packed with all the essential vitamins, minerals, and protein that you would need for one meal, so it serves as a meal replacement if you are trying to lose weight (and there are 7 different flavors).

This is an interesting approach and makes so much sense to me to have an actual meal replacement, rather than a supplement. Me personally, I don't need to lose weight, but I'm not the healthiest person in the world. And I desperately need energy to keep up with Sophia. So I do one shake a day in the mornings, along with my breakfast. You can make the shakes on the go by just adding water, or you can make them in a blender if you prefer to add fresh or frozen fruit, ice, etc., which Tim and I do. But the shakes are only PART of Herbalife's nutritional products. Another product that I LOVE is the Aloe Water Concentrate. This is particularly for digestive health. Those with stomach problems, indigestion, and reflux would greatly benefit from the Aloe's natural healing properties. It comes in regular or mango flavor, but you just add a few capfulls to your water, or you can mix it in with your shake. It's also great for you skin. I love it and so does Sophia. WIth all of her past reflux problems, I knew this would be great for her. I add it to her water cup and she loves the taste. It's a great flavorful alternative to the sugary apple juice.

There are also personalized nutrition plans for 7 categories: Digestive Health, Healthy Aging, Women's, Men's, and Children's Health, Heart Health, Stress Management, Immune Solutions, Nutrition for 7 vital organs, Personal Care/Outer Nutrition, and Energy and Fitness.

Herbalife uses the highest research, development, and manufacturing, including the finest raw ingredients. Herbalife's Nutritional Advisory Board participates in sponsored, innovative university research worldwide.

A couple of great facts:

Herbalife is listed on the NYSE (new york stock exchange)
One of the members on Herbalife's Nutrition Advisory Board won a Nobel Peace Prize- Dr. Lou Ignarro
David Beckam (we all know who he is, lol) and his soccer team take the products and wear the Herbalife logo on their jersey's.
Herbalife did over 4 billion in sales last year alone.
The company has existed for 30 years.

Herbalife's Mission is to change people’s lives by providing the best business opportunity in direct selling and the best nutrition and weight-management products in the world.

Why I got started:

Thanks to Ben and Kacey, Tim and I actually receive the nutrition we want and need but never had time for in the past. Now we both drink at least 1 shake a day, and I personally can tell a difference when I miss my Herbalife routine. Since we really did LOVE the shakes and were taking them everyday, I thought, why don't I just sign up to be a distributor and get the automatic 25% discount! So I did! BUT being the business minded person that I am, I started looking into the business model. I did all of my own research - through non Herbalife websites - and came to the conclusion that Herbalife's business model is ingenious. I explained everything to my very skeptical husband, and here I am..with him on board!

Referring back to my billeted facts....Herbalife was able to sell over 4 billion worth of products last year and has been a strong company for 30 years because of it's products. They work! ...and people love them. Who doesn't want a healthier lifestyle made easy?

So... if you are interested in achieving your nutritional goals in a simply and very affordable way, you can email or call me. I can help you set up a personalized plan to meet your objectives. OR if you are interested in the business aspect of the company, I would be more than happy to give you a rundown of everything. This post has only scratched the surface of what all Herbalife has to offer, so visit my website to learn more about the nutritional products.

www.shopherbalife.com/hrice

my e-mail address is haleigh.rice1@gmail.com if you prefer to e-mail me.

I look forward to writing more soon! We love you all!

it's a single mom weekend!

2011-07-01T13:36:00.000-07:00

Well, Tim is off to Seattle for the wedding of our dear friend Peyton (he's the best man). CONGRATULATIONS PEYTON AND APRIL! LOVE YOU GUYS!

We dropped daddy off at the airport at 2pm, and I have been working ever since (working to get her to take a nap!). As I write, I don't hear her on the monitor anymore, so i'm crossing my fingers that she finally fell asleep. It's 4:30pm by the way...she's a tough one!

But i'm determined to have a nice, easy-going weekend...that is after my home showing appointment tomorrow. OH BOY, SHE'S STILL AWAKE! aaaaahhhhh!

Hopefully I can get this disaster area of a house in some type of livable order.

But cheers to a girls weekend!

p.s. we had another dr. appt today for Sophia, and her ct scan results came back negative! our baby is healthy and happy. Just hard-headed...now let's get her to sleep!

Pictures

2011-06-30T07:39:00.000-07:00

Paw and Sophia- Texarkana, May 2011

Daddy and Sophia- Daytona Beach, June 2011

Miss Priss with an oversized bow, haha

Daytona Beach- June 2011

Finally a quiet moment to blog (she's napping)

2011-06-28T08:45:00.000-07:00

Hi blog world! It's been way too long (i say that every time). Tim and I have been extremely busy! With our trips to Texas and Florida, then back home to real estate and an Arabic class at Georgetown, life never stands still! And not to mention Sophia is developing and walking so fast that we can barely keep up!

Sophia updates:
She turned 1 on May 12! Gosh, we have a 1 year old...crazy!

She's walking everywhere (for about 2 months now). In to EVERYTHING! I can't baby proof our house enough! This kid always finds something to get in to, pull off of a shelf, or put in her mouth.

She talks (babbles) NON-STOP. It's the cutest thing because she acts like she knows exactly what she is saying, but it just comes out as mumbles (except for a few words that we can make out). She says cracker so clearly. She'll say thank you, every now and then, daddy, ma ma when i don't ask her to. She repeats A LOT of things we say..or she tries to anyway. It's so funny. Most of the things she tries to repeat starts out with a D sound, so everything sounds similar.

She loves being outside and will throw a fit when you bring her in..already! Geez, we're in trouble. And to touch on fits, she throws them when you tell her no, take her away from something she's not suppose to do, or if you do something she doesn't like. OH BOY! This doesn't fly very well in my house. AND she has started to HIT. my little hitter! I don't even know how to handle it..i thought we would have this quiet, reserved child (like i was)..but she's quiet the opposite...loud, outgoing, STRONG-WILLED, and hard-headed.

BUT...she. is. HILARIOUS!!! Tim and I laugh non stop at her. We wonder where she comes up with all of her cute little bits. I don't get it...she has the most hilarious personality already. It's like she knows she a jokester!

Sophia still wakes up in the middle of the night, but she's so dang cute and funny, i don't even care! haha. She had a CT scan last week, and we are still waiting on results. But no news is good news, says the nurse. Her pedi wanted this done mostly as a follow-up. She had bleeding on her brain when she was born and coupled with her night-waking, her doctor wanted to do this as mostly precautionary. But everything should be fine.

One last thing! Tim and I celebrated our 6 year wedding anniversary on June 11th...he surprised me with U2 concert tickets.....TWAS AMAZING!!!!!! Bono is incredible!

I have another post coming soon about my new business venture! Stay tuned, all (if anyone actually reads this, haha).

Ohh, and i will post pics of Sophia soon..i forgot to send them from my phone to cp.

Time flies!

2011-04-08T09:47:00.000-07:00

It's been a very fast 5 months since I have updated the blog. Apologies to those who come to our blog dissapointed, :)

Most important developments over the past few months:

Sophia is almost 11 months old! April 12th to be exact. She is hilarious and so much fun! She is cruising around everywhere and standing on her own for a bit. She hasn't had the guts to try and take a step, but I bet she could if she tried!

Tim got accepted into law school (University of Baltimore) and he also received the " Linguist of the Year for Department of the Army" award, which means out of the entire army! He also got accepted into an accelerated Arabic program at Georgetown University this summer- 6 weeks long i believe.

I finally got my Real Estate License here in Maryland. One week after I passed my exams, I signed with a Broker (1 mile from my house) as an Independent Contractor. I'm loving it!

And we on the countdown to ending Tim's military career. May 10 is his out-processing day. We cannot wait! After 6 years of service, it's his time!

Sophia will be turning 1 on May 12th, and we are having her party in Texarkana! We are so excited to be able to celebrate her first birthday with all of our friends and family.

May 10 we fly to Texarkana for 3 weeks..Then to Florida to visit Ben, Kacey, and our new nephew, sweet little Maddox that was born yesterday, April 7th.

This summer is busy, busy, but we can't wait! Bring on the heat!

Some of my favs that Mike and Jess took. (thanks for the dress Aunt Jessica...and the fish shorts!) lol

Home Again

2010-11-22T17:06:00.000-08:00

It's good to be back to our home in Maryland. Tim completed his two months of training in San Angelo, TX. Sophia and I spent the first month in Texarkana with our families, and the second month we got a furnished apartment in San Angelo with Tim. We have been home almost two weeks, and i'm still unpacking and cleaning..sad! All of my free time is spent working on my real estate class, which I will finish this week and take the final test.

Sophia is growing like a flower. "Growing like a weed" isn't as pretty. She will hit 6 1/2 months this friday. I can't even believe it. She is rolling all the time, "talking" non-stop, and eating so much more baby food..so cute! Her favorite is sweet potatoes. Ohh, and she is teething, so you can imagine the drool.

This past friday I made a last minute appointment for Sophia to see her Dr. I have been concerned about her spitting up more than normal still, night waking constantly, screaming out randomly like she is in pain, and a few other things. Of course I have researched all the symptoms, and they all lead to GER or GERD. Gastroesophegial Reflux (disease). Sophia does not sleep more than 3 hours at a time. She wakes up constantly throughout the night, seeming to be uncomfortable. Nobody gets much sleep in this house. Anyway, the Dr. put her on prevacid (reflux medicine) and told me to call in two weeks. If I haven't seen any change, she will refer us to a GI specialist. Lets hope this works!

Winter hat that NanaDee made Sophia

A warm Russian Princess

Sophia's first Halloween (in San Angelo)

My 25th surprise birthday present from Tim! (ignore the mess)

The Happenings

2010-10-21T17:16:00.000-07:00

So much has gone on since my last post. I have not been good about blogging, but once we make it back home to Maryland, I will post more often.

Sophia turned the big 5 months on October 12th! I can't even believe I have a five month old. And not to mention I will be 25 in 3 weeks! Where is the time going?! Anyway, Sophia has done much better with spitting up. When I was in San Angelo (my last post) we decided to switch her formula (with the help of NanaDee, Thank you!) to Parent's Choice Added Rice Starch "for babies that spit up frequently". It has been a miracle drug for her...until she got sick, but I won't get in to that. She was a totally different baby almost immediately after switching. I didn't consult her pedi on this matter, because her dr. has switched for formula several times with no success. Her dr. has staying with the same brand of formula, Enfamil, (probably because she gets paid by them), but I decided to try something new...so happy I went with my own instict. Mom's know best sometimes, right? I would go on a long tangent about how we are all brainwashed to think that only name brand anything is the best. Well, that's not always the case. Parent's Choice (walmart brand) has worked the best for Sophia thus far. And it's much cheaper. Why? Probably because they don't spend millions of dollars selling their products to Dr's and hospitals, or making their formula cans look pretty. I will leave it at that before I get angry again.

Next: Tim decided to get some of his family together in Austin on his four day weekend. Two weeks ago, I drove from Texarkana, Stephanie (his sister) drover from Houston, his cousin Megan drove from College Station, his cousin Amber and her husband Kyle drove from Tyler, and good ole Uncle Dave from Texarkana. We all met in Austin for a bit of a family reunion. At the last minute I decided to bring Sophia, so that we could just drive back to San Angelo with Tim to stay for his remaining time in training. It wasn't the best circumstances to bring an infant to Austin, but I'm glad we made the trip, because Sophia and I have been in San Angelo for the past two weeks. We three got a furnished apartment off base until November 5th. We are enjoying our time here with Tim. We had a great time seeing everyone in Austin, and plan to make it a yearly reunion.

Oatmeal:
Sophia's pedi back in Maryland insisted that I do not start solids until she is 6 months. However, her temporary Dr. in Texarkana starts their feeding program at 4 months. So i figured since she is 5 months, we would give in a whirl. I started with 1 teaspoon rice cereal mixed with formula. She absolutely hated it. Her face was priceless. The next morning i tried Oatmeal mixed with formula..same story. I figured she just wasn't quite ready, so I would wait about a week and try it again. My wonderful friend Stephanie, who has two kiddos (we miss you girls!), one of which is only 3 weeks older than Sophia, told me to try apple juice mixed with oatmeal...Anabelle loves it. So this past monday, October 18th, I tried it once more with Steph's recommendation. Sophia loved it! ( I really prefer her to eat oatmeal over rice cereal, since it doesn't cause constipation) It's the cutest thing now! I have been giving it to her every morning and evening, and then of course her bottle afterwards. The past two days I have even given her some at lunch. I upped her feeding to 2 tablespoons each time today and she gobbled it all right up! She has gotten to the point of opening her mouth every time the spoon comes near. She hasn't quite mastered the art of putting her tongue down and closing her mouth around the spoon, but so far, she's a champ! Does anybody have any recommendations on how much oatmeal to give her each time? For now, i'm just sticking with 2 tablespoons.

Now that she is eating oatmeal, i don't feel like she is even a baby anymore (until she screams uncontrollably) haha. The Pedi in Texarkana recommends 3 weeks of oatmeal, and then go on to baby food, starting with squash and other yellows. Try each one for 3 days to make sure no rash appears and then move on. Any other ideas, moms? If not, i'll stick to that plan.

In other news, i'm still working on my real estate license course online. I should finish within a few weeks, and take the final test when we get back to Maryland. I'm very excited! We are set to make it back around November 10 or 11. Tim goes back to work on the 12th (my b-day). What a bummer! I actually cannot wait to get back home though. Our great friends Dave and Flee, whom we haven't seen in over 3 years and now have 3 girls, moved 1 1/2 hours from us in Virginia! We are so excited to see them and meet all their babies! Their twin girls are only about a month younger than Sophia and Lizzy is 3 1/2! I can't wait to get our little families together.

Ok, pictures! A bit out of order with the oatmeal pics.

.

Who knew that this $15 dollar umbrella stroller would come in handy! It swallows her right now, but she loves it!

We are back!

2010-09-22T18:56:00.000-07:00

It's been too long since my last post. So much has happened, and Sophia is pretty much grown! I have deleted my facebook, and will blog on a regular basis now. My goal is to post on here at least once a week. I hope to keep up with it so that one day Sophia can go back and read all about her growth and milestones and how much we love her.

Sophia turned 4 months on September 12th. She actually rolled over for the first time two days ago. She rolled from her belly to her back during the night. I happened to be awake so I was able to witness the adorable experience. She is making all kinds of noises (talking all the time), and smiling non-stop. She hasn't quite giggled yet, but she is so close! I cannot wait for that sweet sound.

She went through a colicky spell that started about a month ago, but is getting over that. She has still been spitting up a lot which causes her to be fussy and not be able to sleep very well at times...so she is on her fourth kind of formula, which she just started last night. We will give it about 2 weeks to see if it makes a difference. She was on the most expensive kind, for colic, but it wasn't helping with spitting up at all, so we switched her to Similac Sensitive Tummy for Spit-Up. We pray that this new brand/kind makes a difference. On a positive note, Sophia did start sleeping through the night at 4 months. She has been sleeping from 10pm-7am on average. She may wake up once during the night and get a little fussy because her tummy bothers her, but normally giving her the pacifier puts her back to sleep.

In other news Tim, Sophia, and I have been in Texas since September 9th. Tim was sent to ALC (military training) in San Angelo, TX. This training will last for 7 weeks so we figured we should all travel to Texas so that Sophia and I could spend time with family. I actually left Texarkana yesterday and drove to San Angelo to surprise Tim. He was totally shocked! I will stay for about a week. Sophia is with her Nana Dee (Tim's mom), and i know they are having fun. I miss her so much, but I try not to worry too much because I know she is in great hands. It's tough being away. I'm torn between Sophia and Tim, so i'm trying to do my best at being a good mom and wife. It's hard when they are in two different places, but we are making it.

It's getting late here in San Angelo, so I will leave you all with a few recent pictures of our angel.

Anniversary Surprise

2010-06-19T10:09:00.000-07:00

Tim and I celebrated our five year anniversary on June 11th. Luckily we had family here, Papa Cox and Mama Cox, to keep Sophia so we could slip away for a couple of hours. (They were a HUGE help by the way..THANK YOU!) I had no idea what Tim had planned..He just told me that he would be wearing dress pants and a tie. Oh great, I had no idea what to wear..so I threw on a dress to be safe. We drove to a restaurant in downtown Annapolis (which is picture perfect). It was a fancy little local italian restaurant. The manager led us through a locked door to our own private table. When I walked in the manager said, "Happy Anniversary Mrs. Rice". Sooo Tim had been planning...haha. It was very sweet. On our table sat an arrangement of pretty flowers and candles. Tim had a local florist deliver the flowers about half an hour before we arrived. He's so thoughtful! A few minutes after we sat down, he started a sweet speech, that made us both tear up of course (sorry Tim). And THEN to my SHOCKING SURPRISE he pulled out what looked like a ring box! I was speechless. Tim had upgraded my wedding ring! I couldn't speak..i had no idea what to say! I was so surprised!

See, five years ago we were 19 and had NO MONEY..therefore he was forced to take out a loan for 400.00 for my first ring! Which we laugh so hard about now when we realize how far we have come. I love my wedding ring and will always wear it (until i give it to Sophia someday) however, I LOOOOOOOVE my new ring. Tim explained, "five diamonds for five years". It's so big! I don't even feel like I can wear something this nice! But I will quickly get used to it, haha. I'm actually picking it up today from being sized. I cannot wait to wear it proudly. Thank you so much my love! You are the greatest thing thats ever happened to me.

So I had to post a picture of it, which does not do it justice!

I also found our first family photo in the NICU. My poor baby. But she's doing great now. This past tuesday she weighed in at 7lbs 9ozs. We go back in 2 weeks for another weight check. Also we go for a follow-up head ultrasound in a couple of weeks. This is because her first head scan in the hospital came back questionable. The Dr. said there was possible hemmoraging (bleeding) in her brain after birth and also the scan showed an englarged ventricle. It sounds bad, however, the Doctor assured us that he would not send her home if he thought it was dangerous. So he sent us home from the hospital with instructions for a follow-up head scan to make sure everything looks ok. Please pray that everything checks out.

Sophia hasn't quite mastered sleeping through the night yet. Tim went back to work this past Thursday so i have been taking all the night feedings. I get about 2 hours of sleep at a time. I hope she steps it up soon! For those that know my sleeping habits, knows that lack of sleep to this extent has been extremely hard for me, haha. But i'm loving every minute of my time with Sophia. We hang out all day at the house and wait for Daddy to get home around 5pm...then i'm off to run errands and gain some sanity, lol.

Pops, Nanadee, Aunt Melo and Aunt Katy arrive tomorrow (Tim's parents and sisters). We can't wait for them to meet Sophia!

We love you all!

2010-06-14T19:19:00.001-07:00

Aren't they adorable??

2010-06-14T18:46:00.001-07:00