Huge Update!

Alright, ladies and gentlemen, you're in a for a long one. So settle in, grab something to drink, maybe something to eat...and here we go!
So the last two months have just been crazy! August 7th, Megan came to visit us. We had fun going to the beach, playing at home, and watching True Blood with an ice cream bar every night after Lorelei went to sleep. It's was nice and relaxing, and she gave me a little break which was much needed!


August 30th, Mom and the girls flew into Washington, D.C. and we all did the tourist thing until September 1st. I don't recommend doing all that in 2 days. Especially when it's hot out, you have a baby, two whiny kids, and if you have pain issues. Poor Mom did pretty well though on a sore foot. Sydney and Savannah whined like kids will and Lorelei sweated like a little piggy in the stroller. Other than that, it was really fun and interesting, I'd like to go back some day to do a little more sight seeing, but I am NOT driving! DC was like New York minus all the screaming out of the windows of their cars. Traffic was just awful and the streets are crazy.

So we got back to Virginia Beach and relaxed for a day or two and went to the beach. I was really fun! The girls had fun in the water, Sydney especially. Savannah needed a little hand holding.

Erick came home early on the 5th. Lorelei was still in a morning funk since we woke her up, gave her a bottle, dressed her up, then threw her in the car to go. I think she was thinking, "I haven't even had breakfast yet!"


When Erick got off the ship, I handed her to him, she just looked at him. She didn't cry or lean away from him, just looked at him. After awhile, it was business as usual. We went home, had lunch and they played together. We went to the Hilton, where Erick and I were going to stay later, and swam. The girls love to swim and Erick loves bringing Lorelei swimming. The next day, Mom went back home, but she had to fly out of DC.




September was just crazy. Erick had the first leave period, so he was off for two weeks. For two weeks after, he had duty one day, the following day was a half day, then a day off, then duty again. So, as you can imagine, it was hard trying to get back into a schedule.


Lorelei's friend's, Nicole, birthday brought in October. It was a fairy themed party and Lorelei had a blast with the 18 kids that were there. At first, she was a little afraid of all of them, but eventually she dug in and had fun. This one little boy liked Lorelei, so they started to play fight. They were hitting each other and Lorelei thought it was hilarious! He said "ow" first then kept trying to get back at her. He got more and more rough, but Lorelei just laughed! Eventually, we told him to stop and he got frustrated that she wasn't getting hurt like he was. I was so proud of my butt-kickin' little girl! She won her first fight!


For Erick's birthday, we went to Best Buy and bought him a BluRay player. While he was deciding which one he wanted, Lorelei and I were walking around. She had just recently learned to walk really well, so I was following her around keeping watch and picking her up when she fell over. She picked out the first season of the Terminator show and ran around with it. Afterward, we went to the Macaroni Grill for dinner and free cake. Lorelei kept throwing food on the floor and at the servers as the walked by. We had a table that was on the corner of the main room, so people were walking by a lot on their way in and out. 85% of the people stopped and cooed over Lorelei. I swear, if we had a nickle for every "AW!! She's so cute!" we'd be rich as hell! When we got the hunk of cake, Lorelei dug in. After every bite Erick gave her, she hugged him and patted him on the shoulder. It was hilarious!



On the 15th, Dad flew in and the next day Lisa flew in. The 17th we had Lorelei's birthday party at the Oceanfront Courtyard Marriott. We got a suite so it was big enough for everyone. The kids got to go swimming, we had pizza, then we had cake. If you follow me on Facebook, then you've seen the pictures of the cake. For those of you who don't, I made the cake myself out of gum paste and fondant. For my first cake, it turned out pretty well. In hindsight, there are things I would have done differently. Like I wouldn't have used gum paste as much as I did. I had a ton of fun and made me want to make cakes more often. I'm already planning three for my friend Maggie's daughter's, Yassi, first birthday in January, for Erin's daughter's, Isabelle, first birthday in March, and Maggie's birthday in May. I really am excited to do more and learn more as I go.


For Halloween, Lorelei was a pink bunny and I dressed as a witch. We went to the Pembroke Mall with Maggie, Nicole, Yassi, Erin, Isabelle, and Sandy. Nicole dressed as Iridessa, Yassi as a bug/butterfly, and Isabelle as Tinkerbell. I let Lorelei out of the stroller a couple of times, but she just ran everywhere! She decided she was going to be the Energizer Bunny for Halloween, not just some lame pink bunny! The costume came with a hat with ears sewn onto it, but the damn thing was like a winter hat! She was sweating like crazy! So she didn't wear it a whole lot. As we were trick or treating around the mall, I saw other little one-year-olds walking nicely with their parents, not my little one. Erick had duty, so he wasn't able to come along. Boy, I could have used the help!

We FINALLY got some dates as to when Erick needs to be in Mississippi and when we need to be in Japan. We don't have the actual orders yet, but Erick's detailer broke down and told him. My reaction was, "It's about god damned time!!"
Lorelei's 12 month appointment is this Thursday, and I'm fairly nervous as to what they'll say about her weight. The last time I weighed her, she was 26 lbs. I'm hoping she hasn't gained any weight as she's walking now and running around like a maniac! There is a couple on Erick's ship that have a 24 lbs. 8 or 9 month old boy. I asked if they ever get shit about his weight, nope. Of course not! He's a BOY! Boys can be fat little babies. Girls can't. So I'm going into the doctor with my hackles up. If they say one thing, I'm probably going to spazz out.

That's all for now! I'll try and keep on top of this better! Hope all is well with everyone!