Today is our official 5-year wedding anniversary!

It is so hard to believe we have already been married for 5 years. We are going out to eat tonight to celebrate, while Aunt Kari babysits Addisyn :) Today I met my mom and Kari at the mall for lunch. Addisyn was going to play on the inside play area at the mall but I scoped it out and most the kids playing in there were 5-6 years old (too big for Addisyn). We strolled the mall instead.

The 2nd weekend in July we are going to Pirate Land Family Campground at Myrtle Beach. Dave is coming too. We are camping in the pop-up (it has a/c, a mini fridge, and a sink). The campground has a water park with a lazy river and kiddie pool :)

Anyways, Keith and Brooke have been updating their blog about their new baby, David (use the link to the right to check out their blog). If you haven't heard here it is in short: At St. Elizabeth Hospital they discovered he had Imperforate anus and he would need surgery (online I was reading it happens in 1 out of 5000 births). He was sent to St. Louis Children's hospital (where he currently is). They went in to do surgery but ended up having to place a colostomy bag until he is big enough to withstand the surgery (which will likely be in November since Keith is going away for military training and Brooke is coming down here with the baby in August for like 1 1/2 months). Keith called today and said the baby has been taken off oxygen and the feeding tube and that they were actually feeding him out of a bottle today :) The baby is filling up his colostomy bag, so it is working. Hopefully if everything continues to go well the baby will be home in the next week or so. Keep little David in your prayers :)

Saturday is Addisyn's first birthday! We went to Lowes Food's bakery and Addisyn looked through the cake book. She picked out a very colorful cake- I can't wait to see it! Yesterday we went to Harris Teeter to get bottle liners and the cashier touched Addisyn's cheek and Addisyn pushed her hand away and then waved "good-bye" to the woman. It was so funny!

We will post again after her birthday party (everyone is invited- Saturday 4pm Water's Edge Pool).

Love,
Lindy, Brian, Addisyn, and Bear

Look how much she has grown over the past year!

Addisyn 7 weeks old:




Addisyn 11 months old:




Addisyn hugging Winnie the Pooh:


Playing in her new play room:


Addisyn and Grandpa W:

Celebrating 5 years of marriage, a new house, our baby turning 1, and the birth of our new nephew!

There is a lot going on around here. It is hard to believe we have been married for 5 years! Where has the time gone?? Our house is almost complete (see a few pics of "construction" below- we will post "after" pictures when everything is complete) and we can't wait to move into it. Last night Brooke had her baby, little David Edward Wilson, 6 pounds 19 inches long. Keith reports he has brown hair and very good lungs :) We can't wait to meet little David when they come down here in August :) It is hard to believe Addisyn will be turning a year old on the 27th. She went from being completely dependent to completely independent (so she thinks lol). She walks and talks and has her own personality. She is very clear about her likes and dislikes :) I love her so much and everyday my love for her grows. Anyways, below are some pictures (much needed).

Addisyn wanted to help mommy sweep the house :)Look at those blond curls...
Talk about putting your foot in your mouth lol...
Cute little outfit :)
She loves to dig in mommy's purse. Last week I emptied out an old purse and she carried it around the house on her shoulder- it was so cute!! I was so mad that the camera was nowhere to be found at the time!
House pictures....
Brian and Justin tore out the kitchen and this is the beginning of the new one:

The kitchen almost finished:Hallway from dining room to kitchen after tearing up the old flooring:
Hallway floor with new hardwoods (not quite finished though- quarter round not laid in this pic):
Dining room hardwoods being laid:
Addisyn and I playing in the dining room afterwards:
Pics from Grandma Pina's birthday party:

Addisyn snooping through someone's purse at Grandma's birthday party...
Addisyn has her swim suit on so she can go swimming (she can't wear her bikini at the outside pool- we don't want her to get burned):
Addisyn plays with her 2nd cousin, Kyla:
Party guests at Grandma's party:
Have you ever felt this tired???

We will post again soon.
Love,
Lindy, Brian, Addisyn, and Bear

Updates...

I thought it was time to post an update, so here it is. The hardwoods have been installed in the dining room, hallway, and kitchen (and they look awesome!). The carpet has been installed too. The kitchen is almost complete- the sink has to be plumbed and there is one more cabinet to be hung. Brian finished the one bathroom- 2 more to go and the laundry room is not complete yet. We hope to have it all finished this week :)

Anyways, Addisyn is growing everyday. The Dr. told us that after she started walking she would probably start talking and that was true. Addisyn can say mom, dad, dog, that, flag, and hi. Addisyn points and says "that" and it is so precious :) Addisyn's swim lessons are over. She is now doing music for tots. Last week she ran around the room with a tamberine and was screaming really loud. It is a lot of fun and burns some energy. Addisyn is eating better and taking good naps now (usually from 11 to 1 or 12 to 2). What does an 11 month old eat?
6 am: Bottle of whole organic milk with DHA and omega-3 (and she usually goes right back to sleep)
8 am: Wakes up and snacks on some dry cheerios
10 am: One slice of whole wheat toast and apple juice
11 am: Bottle of whole milk again (and she takes her 2 hour nap)
1 pm: Wakes up and has veggies for lunch (Green beans, peas, carrots, and sweet potatoes chopped so she can feed herself)
3 pm: Bottle of whole milk again (and the dry cheerios are out so she can snack on them)
6 pm: Fruit for dinner (we have been cutting up fresh melon, peaches, strawberries, and bananas) with either nursery water or baby juice
8 pm: 8 oz of Similac Advance ready-to-serve baby formula (and off to bed til morning yay!)

Addisyn will be turning 1 on the 27th. Her party will be at Water's Edge swimming pool 4pm. Everyone is invited :)

We have lots of pics- will try to post them later :)

Love,
Lindy, Brian, Addisyn, and Bear

Ready to finish up the house...

We did close on the house on May 28th and we are in the middle of an extensive renovation. We bought the hardwoods, cabinets, counter tops, new doors (and accessories), and landscaping (water control- which had to be done). I finished painting the house a few days ago (thank goodness!!)- several days of nothing but painting is awful- try painting over 2000+ sq feet- yuck. The only thing we will not be doing ourselves is installing the carpet in the bedrooms (we are going to have Lowes do this for us). Pics of our renovation to come....

A little over a week ago, Justin's (Kim's boyfriend) truck was stolen. The police recovered the 'remains' of the torched vehicle. It was found behind an industry on 321 in Gastonia. The rims were gone, the headlights/taillights were all gone, and what was left was so burned you could barely tell it was a truck. It is absolutely sickening that someone could have done that! There is a police detective looking into it.

I did receive my official admission to UNCG graduate school letter in the mail. I am starting classes this fall (which I need to register for before they all fill up). My last day at DSS was May 29th- I was told I could come back anytime :) I was planning on working part time at the hospital again, but the hospital was looking for a part time employee who could work full time hours. I started on June 1st and realized that I would be working 7:30 to 4:30 Monday- Friday and I could "let them know if I wanted to be off a day here or there". My take on it: I did not take a $4.50/hr pay cut to work full time hours- I was wanting to work part time (20 or 25 hours/wk) so I could have more time to spend with Addisyn. So with all that being said I am officially a full time stay-at-home mommy :) I spent a few days last week finishing up the painting and this upcoming week I will arrange to have the carpet installed. We would like to move next weekend (this all depends on whether or not we have our carpet, fridge, and stove- and if Brian is done with the other vital things). Once we move I will get to enjoy the perks of full time mommy-hood lol.

Today we went to Babies-r-us and bought an awesome forward facing carseat for Addisyn. It has extra cushions and excellent crash-test ratings. I am finally going to be able to sit in the front seat of the car again (I have been sitting in the back with Addisyn since she was born b/c she has been facing the back seat in her rear-facing carseat). Addisyn enjoyed running around the store and grabbing toys off the shelf. She is so independent now! She wants to do everything herself. It is so precious!

Addisyn will be 1 yr old on June 27th- soooo hard to believe! We are planning a pool party on that day (since it lands on a Saturday) at Water's Edge pool (Grandma Neff and Grandma/pa Pina all live there)- Invitations to come!

I will post again soon with pics.

Love,
Lindy, Brian, Addisyn, and Bear

We are set to close on our house tomorrow at 2pm! We will post to let you know how it all goes. I was instructed to bring $17,885.16 to closing along with our photo IDs :) Addisyn's swim lessons are almost over- she has only 2 classes left. Kari said Addisyn does all the arm movements and kicks her legs as the swim teacher tells them to do. She loves the water :) Dave put some pics of her swim lessons on his blog http://dave28056.blogspot.com Addisyn will start gymnastics in July or August (which I am sure she will love too). Addisyn has the walking thing mastered. She walks now instead of crawling. She is quite fast at it too. She picks things up and stands up without holding onto anything. She bends over and looks at little pieces of dirt on the floor (and usually tries to eat them). Last week she fell and it her head on the door and got a little bruise on her forehead :( Well we will post again after closing.

Love,
Lindy, Brian, Addisyn, and Bear

Addisyn eating her shoe and being held by Daddy:
Addisyn and Mommy:
Addisyn walking around with shoes in her hands:
Addisyn and Grandma:
Kari (21 weeks prego) and Kim:
The guys playing cards- Brian has on his poker face lol:
Addisyn brushes her teeth (she has 2 on the bottom and her top 2 are starting to come in now)- See her bruise :(
Addisyn in her new blue dress:
Addisyn pets the dog:
Addisyn drinks water out of Daddy's water bottle:
Addisyn climbed into her rocking chair and is laughing at "Wonder Pets" on TV:
Addisyn intently watching "Wonder Pets" on the Noggin channel:

Video Clips...

I have been having trouble getting my video files to upload, but here are a few videos:


In this video Addisyn walks across the room to eat a baby puff off of the floor :)
(10 months old)



In this video Addisyn carries a toy around the room...



Addisyn drinks water out of Brian's water bottle:

Stuff...

Keith, Brooke, Rugenstein, and Stormy arrived on Friday for a 2 week visit. We had Brooke's baby shower today- Brooke's mom makes the best punch :) Keith and Brooke are headed to the beach this upcoming weekend, Rugenstein leaves Wednesday, and Stormy is going to a doggie kennel for the weekend.

Grandma P was admitted to the hospital this morning. I stopped by around lunch time and visited with her. Get well soon Grandma! We love you :)

Addisyn has really conquered walking. She walks like it is nothing now. She has also discovered her voice. She talks all the time. She can say Mama, Dada, Hi (or Hhhhhhh), and baba (which can mean a number of different things). She also screams at the top of her lungs b/c we laugh and think it is cute. Addisyn's favorite foods are puffs, cheerios, chopped up bananas, and shredded cheese. She prefers really watered down juice to eat with her meals and milk in between meals. Addisyn is also enjoying her swim lessons at the YMCA twice weekly. Brian took her on Friday and said she was splashing and kicking her legs. She is such a bundle of joy. I love her more than anything in the world :)

We are waiting to close on the house. We have picked out everything we need to remodel- and we have agreed on everything including the hardwoods, tile, and carpet. We can't wait to get into the house and fix it up. We are making the master bedroom (downstairs) into the guest room and we are taking a bedroom upstairs across from Addisyn's room. The other room will be a toyroom- what do you do with all those toys??

I have decided I no longer want to work fulltime. I would love to spend some time with Addisyn while she is young (I went back to work when she was 4 weeks old). I put in my notice with DSS (which I am really sad to leave b/c I have a great job and I love catching people who commit welfare fraud- Saving our tax dollars!). The hospital did call and offer me a parttime job, which I am taking. I have also been accepted into graduate school (UNCG). I will be taking online classes and participating in some cohorts that meet locally. I am getting my M.S. in Conflict Resolution.

We will post again soon!

Love,
Lindy, Brian, Addisyn, and Bear


Pictures...

Addisyn playing with toys...
Addisyn climbs in and out of her baby chair all the time...
Addisyn sees Dad and Uncle Keith sitting on the back deck and wants out there. She kept saying "dada dada dada" It was so precious!
Addisyn sound asleep in an odd position on Daddy (what a doll)...
Brooke opening gifts at her shower...
Addisyn and Mommy...
Addisyn playing...
Addisyn taking a good look at Uncle Keith...