first impressions of our new home...

the flight over was not too bad... we left at midnight and i was able to get the baby to sleep before takeoff and he slept through most of the flight... i kinda slept. it was really cold and so i only half slept.  changing planes was hard because i had the baby, a backpack, and a diaper bag.  the next plane ride was interesting as it was the smallest plane... 2 seats on each side and barely an isle.  when i went to sit in my seat some lady was sitting in it because she and her 8 year old son had been split up so the flight attendant told her to go there... but the didn't tell me and it was towards the back of the plane and her seat (which was now mine) was on the front row... so now i have all my stuff and nowhere to go with everyone trying to get on behind me.  i handed daniel to some nice looking lady while i shuffled my way up to the front of the plane with all our stuff and then once people were all on the plane i went and got my baby.  luckily it was a very short flight... less than an hour.  once we landed in jacksonville we had to wait 3 hours for chris' plane to come in.  so i parked all our bags and stroller and everything in the corner of baggage claim... a tiny tiny room.. haha but whatever. the worst part was we had planned on renting a car when we got word our car wouldn't be there till monday... and of course there were no available cars.  i felt like crying from being so tired and just wanting something to go more smoothly... after a while out of nowhere chris comes strutting around the corner... sadly the baby was asleep or that would have been much more fun. but it was a welcome relief for him to show up!

we headed out and got a cab... pat the cab lady quickly became our new and first friend in NC.  she took us to our hotel and was so nice giving us all sorts of info about jacksonville.  she also picked us up the next day so we could go get the keys to our house and go see it for the first time! here is our cute little home... 

the whole neighborhood is really cute and nice.  and we have met a couple neighbors and they are all really nice and kind.  welcome to the south!  everyone waves and says hello... and i have never had so many conversations with strangers while shopping.. mostly because they see daniel's hair and want to have a conversation about it... i really don't mind... he is super cute!

did i mention it rains here a lot??? like almost everyday? sometimes it is so heavy it looks like a car wash on our windows.  these pics can't even do it justice...

daniel is also very fun! he smiles and babbles all the time... here are some of my favorite shots lately

he also loves his feet!!! 

he makes lots of funny faces when he's talking to us...

he has also done some big boy things like... go on a swing for the first time... he kinda liked it

also first shot in front of home and laughing with dad

and first time in shopping cart

speaking of his hair... in case you are wondering where he got it from... here is a pic of me as a baby... along with daniel.... please not the similarity in hair style...

after we arrived here we ended up having to wait a week for our shipment of goods to arrive as the driver had messed up and gotten the arrival date wrong... so the company paid for us to stay in a hotel and food and rental car...since i wasn't unpacking a house i had nothing to do.... so we went shopping. all for things we were planning to buy in the near future... we just ended up taking care of it all with in 3 days.  we bought a dryer (already had a washing machine), a bed (we really wanted to upgrade to king size), a lawn mower (cause this grass grows like crazy!), and a car!!!! (we sold chris' in vegas and needed a second car).  the car was the most exciting and scary purchase and we decided in the end to go for a minivan and have it be our family car as long as it will last. 

here are some super cute videos of him as well... nothing special but for those grandma's that dont get to see him in action in person... i know they will enjoy!

here he is laughing with daddy...

here he is just chatting and then kicking his crazy little feet... he never sits still. especially since i put these little shoes on him and he hasn't stopped kicking his feet since. haha sorry the first one is sideways... i keep forgetting to keep my phone on its side...

all in all we are adjusting well and have made some friends.  military life is interesting and different but we are having a good time.  more on that later :) 

last week in vegas....

our last week in vegas was bitter sweet.... i was excited to see chris after 5 weeks... but very sad to leave my mom and family.  she has been my shopping partner forever and we have fun going to ross and trying on hideous dresses till you find that one gem... we also loved going to olive garden at least once a month with grandpa sam and meesha and gigi and my mom... grandpa sam mom and i went one last time the thursday before i left.. it was fun as always and grandpa had fun saying his little good byes to daniel vern.  i know grandpa is really going to miss this little guy of ours...

we also spent a lot of time with amanda since she was staying at my moms for a couple days.  she was so cute and just wanted to play with daniel the whole time.  it was fun staying at my moms since our apartment was completely empty and our stuff was moving across the country... my mom also got a big kick out of watching daniel eat because he half cries the whole time if you dont put food in his mouth fast enough...

here's our empty apartment and them taking my car away to meet us in NC.

it was a good week and i tried my best not to cry as my mom left me at the airport... i just walked away fast... goodbye las vegas... hope to see you soon!!!

4th of july beach trip

the fourth of july was actually very uneventful for us at home... we didn't do anything... the baby went to bed early and i couldn't fall asleep since the neighbors.. and my uncles family around the corner were firing giant fireworks till 11 pm... it sounded like canon fire! haha

the next morning we loaded up the car and headed for laguna beach for the 2012 vern christensen family reunion.  since chris was gone to boot camp i went with my mom and roomed with her... it was great fun to spend the time with her especially since we were moving away the next week.  we drove down with grandpa and my cousin james and his fiance... daniel was pretty much amazing the whole way down there ...hardly ever fussing or crying.



we had a lot of the rooms right next to each other which was great fun and meant a lot of congregating outside the rooms at all times of the day...

it was so fun to see a lot of my cousins... many i have not seen in years.  we also took a bunch of pics with grandpa... in his old age he's a big softy and he teared up in almost every single one... 

one day we spent at the beach. it was fun but cold... since i am red headed and fair skinned and daniel was only 5 months at the time he couldn't wear sunscreen so we sat under the umbrella the whole time... and without sun on you the ocean breeze is cold... we were all bundled up but still had fun.  i brought this tiny pool to blow up and use as a play mat and bed for daniel. it worked out really well!!

the little kids had so much fun playing in the sand.... gigi and amanda and zach and cody had great fun playing together... and i had a great time watching creepy man with bum showing.... not really but he stood in front of us for over an hour... not fun. 

the next day we spent riding the free trolley around laguna beach. we went to the farmers market and got some yummy fruit and then we went to the saw dust festival which is this giant art/craft festival.  it was fun to walk around and look at everything and amanda had a ball. she got her face painted, made a flower, and got a balloon animal.  i was in everyones way since i had the baby on front and backpack on back... i kept hitting people. woops. but daniel was very good and even enjoyed reading the map with grandma.

one morning daniel was being very cuddly... doesn't happen that often... but it was super cute.

my sister was going to church sunday morning and forgot to pack a dress and was going to go in capris till my mom remembered she had brought this gem.... doesn't it look so good on em?? hahahahaha and yes she did wear it to church... its california... you can get away with that kind of stuff.

the trip was so great and i loved being able to spend all that time with my mom and family before i moved across the country.  i love my grandpa and am always grateful he does all these family trips and helps us out with so much!  love my family!! 

5 and 6 months...

since we were nomads the month of july and our house was being shipped across the country we  missed taking pics. so here we are at 6 months and it will cover both... his stats will also have to wait as we couldn't get an appointment with the new doc for 3 weeks.

i will say he is the happiest baby ever!

these last 2 months he has started doing soooo much!!!

- he started seriously teething and drools like crazy!!! and never stops gnawing on his hands. you can even see 2 whit dots/mounds forming... we may still be weeks away but he chews on everything.
- he started eating real food starting with rice cereal and loves it!! from the first bite!! i can't get it in fast enough. and we now make him a giant bowl of oatmeal and mix it with 2nd stage jar of food. boy is hungry!
- he rolled over for real and holds his head up really well!! he still hasn't really rolled from front to back so he still gets mad when he rolls to his tummy because he cant go back. its hilarious.
- after chris left for ODS i got really tired of rocking the baby to sleep especially since he started fighting me so much and it was taking too long and hard to hold him for so long by my self... so i let him cry it out... and wow!!! the first night he cried for 20 min and at the end i gave him his pacifier and he fell asleep and slept through the night. the next day i started doing the same for naps and he would cry for 10 min and fall alseep. now after a week i put him down and he rarely cries!!! he just rolls onto his side and falls asleep!!! how amazing is that??!! a mothers dream child for sure!!!
- since he has so much drool in his mouth at all times he found a new sound gurgling all the spit in his mouth! haha and he loves it when you do it back to him.  we are having very deep gurgle conversations. haha
- he has had his first real poop... and it was like 3 days worth... huge and stinky! not excited for that change.
- i had to take the bumper out of his bed because my little worm has now figured out how to roll over while wrapped and he keeps getting trapped face down between bed and bumper. no good.
- he has also become a master at rolling and now half the time wont stay on his back but is mad when he rolls onto his tummy.. its hilarious.
- he is really good at grabbing at things around him. toys that are hanging around him, or things sitting in front of him and even occasionally his moms hair... not my favorite.  his feet are probably his favorite thing to grab and chew on.  its just too cute!
- his hand eye coordination is getting so much better.  he looks at his pacifier and then puts it in his mouth.  he also likes to look at it and then drop it and watch it fall. also not my favorite game but i love that he is learning!!
- he is so ticklish! he laughs so hard and sometimes cries if you do it too much. woops... but its still funny.
- he likes to babble all the time mixing his gurgling with mamamamama and ooo and ahh sounds. its fun. his face gets all serious.  he even does it when he first wakes up in the morning. he will just lay there and talk to himself for 10 min or so.
- he likes peek-a-boo, and anytime you sing to him.
- we have a bedtime routine now... bath, nurse, book, song, prayers, wrap and night night.

notice the crazy hair!

people here in the south love him!! his hair is a huge hit!! everyone wants to talk about his hair... i get stopped anytime i go out and people want to talk to him and touch his hair... and he's good... he smiles real big at everybody.they all say it looks like he got electrocuted... haha  i don't mind it at all since people here are so friendly.

wiggling around in bed... more like flapping his arms and legs

still super tall and skinny!

 crazy how much he has grown!!!