Life on the west coast

We're finally here in Washington (and finally getting settled!). We've most of our things unpacked and are enjoying living here very much. It's gorgeous! We live in Ellensburg, Washington which is nestled right in the cascades. Alex, Spencer and I took our first mountain hike this morning. (OUCH!) =). It was a lot of fun and the view was breathtaking.

Speaking of Spencer, she is growing like crazy. She will be 6 months old a week from Monday and I'm finding that really hard to believe. I skimmed through her newborn pictures tonight and had myself tearing up. She's such a joy. She's always laughing and is happy 99% of the time. We have definitely been blessed with an amazing little gift. She's learned to roll over in the last month and we can't get her to stay on her back. Lay her down and PLOP! She's rolled onto her belly..and she's discovered how to sleep that way as well. It's her new favorite sleeping position! She's always talking (just like her mother), "happy screaming", & laughing. She's already in 6 month clothes and is too long for some of those! I just can't believe how much she's grown!

The weather here is very similar to Kansas but probably overcast more often. We've had a handful of pretty mild days and stay in the 40s most of the time this time of year. We are VERY close to the mountains. I can step out onto the street in front of our house and see them. It's beautiful. So far, I can say it's my favorite location we've lived. We can't wait for it to warm up some and do more exploring!

Alex is enjoying his new job as an EOD tech and we're both getting to know the small military group out here. He seems to stay pretty busy! We're both relieved to just be finished with school and to have a little bit of time to get comfy somewhere ha! =) -but that's the military life...you just never know when you're going to get sent somewhere or how long you'll REALLY be there. lol.

So as you can see things are wonderful right now and we are very happy!!

New Adventures

Once again I'm so sorry I have slacked at updating!

Spencer is now 4 1/2 months old and growing incredibly fast! She had her 4 month well baby check up a few weeks ago and weighed in at 16lbs 12oz. & was 26inches. All of her measurements fell into the 97th percentile. What can I say, our little girls likes food :). She's so happy and learning new things daily! She's rolling up onto her side and she's constantly "talking". She is the biggest joy in our lives and it's been a blessing to give everyone a chance to spend some time with her this past month.

Alex graduated from EOD school this past weekend and he finished with a 98% average. Surprised? Not even a little :). We'll be heading to Washington early next week and setting up our new duplex there. We expect to be there for three years, but you just never can tell with the military lol. We're very excited for the change of scenery. Our location is right by the mountains and near some indian reservations- I've already been warned to keep my eyes on Spencer because she may be snatched up haha. But in all seriousness we're thrilled for this new adventure and can't wait to explore the area!

Spencer and I are very excited to see Alex, as it has been over a month since we've last seen him! God has really blessed us this past year & we can't wait to see what's in store in the future! I'll post pictures soon :).

November 23, 2011

Hello :)

Spencer is now just over 10 weeks old and growing so much every single day. It's been amazing watching her learn and grow. She's closing in on 13 lbs and as of her last appointment a week or so ago she was still around 24 inches. She's an incredibly happy baby...always laughing and smiling. She loves to watch Bella walk around. She's discovered her tongue as well as how to blow bubbles & make funny noises. She LOVES when I make the funny noises back at her...it just cracks her up. haha :).

We're pretty excited to spend our first Thanksgiving together as a family tomorrow. Preparations will start today. Alex gets a 4-day weekend for the holiday, so that will be nice :).

As far as school goes Alex is still excelling and still enjoying what he's learning. He will be graduating at the end of January 2012 and we hope to have our orders in the next few weeks! (hopefully sooner than later). It's been a long wait!

We can't wait to get home and see our family and friends for the Christmas holiday. We love you all!

Growing Munchkin

It's almost Halloween and that means our little girl is almost 7 weeks old! I can't believe how fast time has flown since I had her. She's growing every day and I can honestly say it's nothing short of amazing to watch the new things she does and just interact with her. At her last appointment (last week) she weighed in at 11 lbs and 5 oz and was 25 inches. I can't believe how much she's grown! She's the most beautiful little baby I've ever laid eyes on :). She's smiling all the time now & is too long for her newborn onesies!

Alex is doing great in school, of course! We're hoping to get orders in the next few weeks and I'm insanely anxious!! But instead of complaining about what could happen I've decided to take on whatever destination we're given with a positive attitude. We will do the best we can with whatever we're given. You don't have much control in the military life and even after 3 years it's hard for me to accept that.

I'm starting my new work out plan to shed the last of these baby pounds...so wish me luck! I'm already down a few pounds from my plateau weight thanks to eating better! I'm 12 lbs away from my pre pregnancy weight and hope to lose 22 total! Pray for me!! :)

We're excited to come home for the holidays and see everyone..and to introduce you all to our little munchkin! She's incredible! I'm not sure what else to update about for now..but I'll try harder to keep this up to date!!

Love,
Mary <3

Our angel is here :)

I'm awful at updating but I bring good news.

At 225pm on Monday September 12, 2011 the most beautiful little girl ever born entered the world. Spencer Noelle is amazingly perfect and has a beautiful head of dark hair. As of right now it's looking like she may have blue eyes, but it's still too early to tell. She was 8lbs  3 oz and 20.5in. Our doctors gave us a clean bill of health and all of the nurses fell in love with her. She's an amazing little person and she has the best temperament. We had a few surprises with her birth though!

I was scheduled to be induced on Sunday the 11th, but apparently when there is a full moon a lot of women go into natural labor so our hospital was filled too quickly for us to continue with our scheduled induction. We were sent home and told we may get in the next day, but basically not to count on it due to the number of women going into natural labor. I went in to see my doctor on the 12th and she said that we'd better hope I was dilated to a 5 at least so we had a good reason to get sent to the hospital. Well, thankfully God was ready for us to meet our little munchkin that day because I was at 5cm exactly and 100% effaced with my water about to burst. We were sent to the hospital that very minute and the doctor burst my water. As soon as she did, she ordered an ultrasound because she was suspicious that Spencer may have flipped and set herself in a breech position. The ultrasound confirmed that she had in fact turned around and taken a nice sized poop while she was chillin in there. lol. When we heard the doctor say we had to have a C-section we were very surprised and personally, I was terrified. I had never had any surgeries in my life before then and knowing I had to suddenly go in and have one was scary. The doctors prepped and I was wheeled in and readied for my surgery. Alex came in and stood by me throughout the whole operation. I don't think I could have handled it alone. Within 15 mins of starting the surgery Spencer was out and officially in the world. Seeing our baby for the first time was one of the most amazing experiences we've ever had.

We were both a little scared at first because she didn't cry when she came out and she really didn't cry the entire time they were cleaning her and getting her stats. It turns out she's just a very content little girl. She cried 1-2 times the entire hospital stay (and she still doesn't get upset easily at all). She is a perfect little miracle. Alex is doing AMAZING with her. He took over the feedings and changings while I was healing in the hospital and he's a wonderful daddy to his little girl. We're both in love with her and can't get enough of her. We really can't wait to bring her home and show her off to everyone. We really couldn't have asked for a better baby or hospital experience. God has truly blessed us.

Our beautiful miracle. 9/13/2011 (her onesie is from her Auntie Rachel)

Way overdue update

Oh my goodness, I apologize for being awful at updating this thing!

Well we're here in Florida. We've been here since May. It's beautiful, but extremely hot and humid (a different humidity than back home in KS). It's hard for a big pregnant woman like me to get out in the heat too much so Alex and I have only been to the beach a handful of times. It's still nice to know that we're only 20 mins from white sandy beaches and rolling oceans though :).

I'm 30 weeks along as of yesterday and more ready than ever to get the little munchkin out! She's growing and constantly moving- making breathing and getting up/down off furniture difficult. lol. Don't take your mobility for granted! She is measuring normal, as am I and she still has a healthy heartbeat (as of my appointment today).

I was recently in Kansas and we had the baby shower. Thank you so much to everyone who was able to come and to everyone who gave baby Spencer something. We love and appreciate everything! We're going to begin the set up process this week, as we'll be getting the rest of her goodies in from the shower. I was only able to stuff the clothes in my luggage! We plan to do some major baby shopping here in a few weeks to get the last of her furniture. Alex has felt her kick and move more often lately, which has been exciting for us both. We can't wait to meet our little girl!

Also- two good friends of mine got married on July 3 and I was very thankful to be a part of their wedding. Congrats Sadie and Dylan! I love you both!

Alex is STILL excelling in school, scoring very high on all assessments and enjoying the things he's learning. I think we're both ready for school to be over with and to get our little family somewhere stable though. We're anxious to find out where the army will send us after Florida....hopefully Ft. Riley :).

Our pups have had a hard adjustment to Florida life. If you've met Beau you know he's a bit on the tubby side, plus his coat is black so the heat really gets to him. It ain't easy being fat. haha. He misses his "other mommy" (Alex's mom) and his girls (the other dogs at the Burdge house). He has no one to boss around except Bella and she doesn't listen well. lol. We recently had to buy a crate for them, which we call their "home" as to not bring back the horrible crate training memories for Beau. Beau had developed a habit of pooping inside as soon as we left and Bella decided to eat the walls of our rental house so now they get to spend time in their home when we're away. They've adjusted surprisingly well though so it was obviously a good move! :)

Life is crazy and we're both pretty tired of me being pregnant. I'm sure we have different reasons..Alex is surely sick of my whining and desire to be waited on by now and I'm tired of having to be rolled off the bed/couch and having my feet look as though they belong to a 400 lb woman. But baby girl still has some more growing to do! Soon enough. :)

I hope this updated everyone well enough! We love and miss you all and can't wait to post pics of Spencer once she gets here!! <3

Phew!

Life is insanely busy. Anita and I recently got back from Alabama/Florida where we managed to avoid all of the tornadoes. Thank God. Alex managed to stay safe during all of the horrible storms as well.

Anita and I are now back and I'm happy/relieved to report we found and were approved for a house in Niceville, FL. It was such a stressful week! We did manage to sneak to the beach a few times though and it was MUCH needed. And I'm excited to report we're going to be able to bring both of our pups with us down south, which was a big concern!

And in even more exciting news, Alex and I will be finding out the gender of our baby on Monday and we couldn't be more excited. I may die waiting it out this weekend! We have names picked out no matter which way it goes and we're ready to start calling the little one by name!

Speaking of little one, he/she has been moving around like crazy! At first, I wasn't sure if what I was feeling were baby movements but at this point I'm positive and it's one of the most unusual/special feelings. It seems like every few days the movements get stronger which gives me a sense of comfort and security, knowing baby is getting stronger. Every day it becomes a bit more of a reality that we are going to be "mommy" and "daddy" to this little being in a matter of months. I have to be honest though, it's exhilarating and terrifying all at once.

Alex and I can't wait to finally be united in the same state again. 9 months in Florida will be nice, even though he will have a pretty demanding school schedule.

Rob is flying to NC as we speak to meet Alex and move all of our household items down to the new house. I'm heading down to FL for good in a little over a week. Rach and I are making the trip with the pups and I'm sure it'll be interesting! It's been a stressful few weeks for Alex and I , but we've GREATLY appreciated all the help and support/love we've received from family and friends.
 

Updates will be made once we find out more about Baby Burdge!