Navy wife

I have decided that I am going to be a "navy wife" again. The biggest difference between my friendless self and my self that had lots of friends is that I haven't felt like a Navy wife in a long time (and I have a baby now). Since Ryan started shore duty our family life has been awesome but our friendships have fallen apart. I can't help but wonder if it's because we haven't been connecting with people we were forced to know because of frg meetings, underways, deployments and the various gatherings that were so much fun on a ship. 

I got to know so many women from Ryan's old ship and I think eventually shore duty tore those friendships apart. Some moved, most hit shore duty. Recently the last friend I had from that ship got mad at me for saying I was annoyed by the barrage of elf on the shelf posts and pictures and deleted me. 

I hope to become friends with some new Navy wives. All who have husbands on shore. We are having one family over this Saturday, one next Saturday and in a few weeks we will be getting together at another's house. 

I guess part of not really being what I consider friends with people (hanging out and doing more than occasional texting) is that I don't know what an adult friendship is like. I always assumed we would be the people who hosted dinner parties with couple friends and their kids and it hasn't really been that way yet.

I just hope that the future is as bright as my eyes are. I really like these ladies and I hope wonderful friendships will blossom!

Time to be an adult.

An ADULT. You know, the type that has a couple good friends that they see every now and then. The type that owns a home and has a dog and a fence that is so rickity that it needs replaced before it is painted white. The kind that focuses on their family. And God.

I have had a intensely hard time realizing that I am that person. Before I got pregnant with Abby we were the type that partied every weekend. I would be lying if I said I didn't miss the social events and being sure that we would be hanging out with friends every weekend but I don't really feel like I miss being drunk. Anyway, when I got pregnant, the hanging out slowed and eventually, when I had Abby, came to a stop. I have had an incredibly difficult time with the fact that I'm not the person my then friends were friends with anymore. I am a different type of adult. Most of them weren't anywhere near settled down and that's their prerogative. Ryan and I were ready to take on this new part of our adult lives, they weren't and apparently they didn't want to be a part of it with us either.

It's ok though. I have slowly been coming to terms with the fact that I need to make NEW friends. The ones that are the same types as us. The ones we have things in common with. The ones that want to be in our lives.

As of right now, I am in the process of getting to know 3 local families better. I am praying that things work out with at least one of them.

I know that you can go on in life with no problems without friends but I feel like it could get old and sad eventually, especially since I already feel that way.

Have you ever had an issue like this in the military life? Maybe even NOT being in the military life? I just assume my readers are military involved because that's what my blog is supposed to be about, so my apologies if you aren't!

Wish me luck!

OMGosh!

Another blog in ONE WEEK?! Say what?! Hah.

On to business as usual... I am about to do something I haven't done in a while: Blog about the *gasp* Navy life.

We have decided with heavy hearts that Ryan is going to reenlist for 2 years come October. He literally HAS TO for us to get out of this house. We call it his "getting out of the Navy reenlistment". After he gets out, we plan to move back to Indiana, close to family. He is going to go active reserve so he can still get benefits such as retirement and insurance.

I know what this means, but, I don't know if you do. Ryan will have a year and a half on a ship. It pains me quite terribly to even think about it. That means underways and probably another deployment. That means leaving not just me. That means leaving US. I don't even want to think about Abby asking me when daddy is coming home. It's going to rip my heart into a million tiny pieces.

For now we are enjoying more of a normal life. We plan to start trying for another baby in May and pray to get pregnant quickly because we don't want to risk me having the baby while he is underway or deployed and we wont know his ship schedule until he has orders. It's already frustrating, lol. We will get through it, though. We always do.

Long time no see

I know, I know. I am absolutely terrible at blogging these days. I can honestly tell you that I am probably only on the computer for a couple of hours a week. Yes, I am always on my phone but have you ever written a blog on a tiny keyboard? It's no bueno.

The last few months have been so crazy busy but I will do my best to tell you about all of the happenings in the Dawson household!

In October we released balloons for Abby's older sibling, with her, for the first time ever (our 3rd year)

In October we celebrated Abby's first holiday, Halloween. This may not be a big or important holiday but it sure is a fun one! We put the fire pit in the front yard and handed out candy. It was a blast to see the cute kids and for everyone to ooh and ahh over Abriella. And to breast feed while handing out candy. I'm a pro ;)

In Novermber Abby had her first bites of food! I only have a video of that so I can't share it but she LOVED it! We also went to what is now our church for the first time. And it lightly snowed as well! Later, my parents and 3 of my nieces came down from Indiana to spend Thanksgiving with us!

 Abby on left, mommy on right!

In December I did a photo shoot of Abby for Christmas, she opened her first presents, met another Santa and traveled to Indiana to spend Chrstmas with family. And celebrated New Years of course! Oh, and, we bought a 2014 Grand Caravan. We have become "those" people. After a trip to Indiana in the G6 we realized we needed something bigger. We chose a van because we plan on having another baby some time soon. We LOVEEEEEE it. While we were in Indiana, by the way, Abby was dedicated to my families church and we also met one of our online mommy friends and her baby! Oh, and Abby went to the er on Christmas (mega early in the morning) for an ear infection. Poor baby was sick pretty much the whole time we were in Indiana!

And that's the end of 2013 in a nutshell! I hope to remember to blog more often this year! Thank you all for sticking around anyway!

The most beautiful thing

To a mother, there is nothing more amazing, precious and beautiful than her baby. This sweet little baby who knows nothing short of complete adoration for his/her parents.

I don't like being away from my baby, ever. End of story. It has been 4 months since I have brought this wonderful creature into existence and I want to hold her all the time. I even want to sleep with her in my arms. She is everything to me. My beloved. There is nothing more amazing, precious and beautiful. She coos, talks, rolls, smiles and laughs. Yet those are just a few of the reasons she is amazing.

I sat here and tried so hard to write out that she makes me sad and mad and tests my patience time and time again but even when I think back on the times she woke up once every hour or the times she cried and cried and wouldn't stop, she never made me mad or sad and though she does test my patience, I have never been impatient with her.

I think I was born to be a mother. I love being a mother. It is my job and I WILL BE great at it. I will always prefer the way I parent over the way others parent unless they parent the same way I do and that is my right as a parent. I will do my best to not judge others for the way they parent because I don't know their story and even though sometimes I look at someone who is just letting their baby cry and trying to give it a pacifier and I think to myself "Pick that baby up!!!" I also have to think that maybe she just can't right now. Being a parent is hard work and we all need a moment from time to time.

This is my baby. There are many like her (except she's one of a kind) but this one is mine.

Nursing in Public

My friends know me as a frequent "NIPer". Ever since I had Abby, I knew I would nurse in public. At first I figured I would use a cover but I soon realized that was not for us. I didn't want to cover my baby in the heat of the Summer while she ate. It felt so wrong to me. So I finally told my husband that I would no longer cover Abby while feeding her in public.

And so our NIP journey began. Here are a few of my favorites :) Enjoy!

This is the FIRST time I NIPed:

Abby was 2 weeks old. And this was one of the last times I wore a cover while doing it.

This was the best place I NIPed for a while, the commissary! It was also the first time I got photo evidence of myself NIPing with no cover. I felt empowered.

Next favorite place is on the base beach! We went there for a while on Labor Day after cooking out. Abby needed a Labor Day meal too!

Then came the Atlantic Ocean. This is one of my favorites because I just think the picture is beautiful.

And last but not least, today's! Ryan got LASIK and we weren't allowed to be in the waiting room because Abby is a baby so we walked around the hospital until little miss got hungry. I chose probably the busiest place in the whole hospital to feed her but I didn't really have anywhere else to sit. We sat in the pharmacy waiting area! Go us! Countless people passed as Abby feasted and not one word was said! I'm lucky enough (or should I say PEOPLE are lucky enough) to have never been told to nurse my baby somewhere else or anything like that (so far, and God help anyone that utters those words to me). I am so proud of our journey so far. We have made it 4 months and counting!!!

Speaking of 4 months and counting, look at this little girl! She turned 4 months old yesterday! She is 27 3/4 inches long and 18.82 lbs!!! Insane, right?! She is in the 99 percentile for height and weight and her head is 59 percentile. The child is the size of a 1 year old, y'all.  She is my world.