An All New Outlook on Life.....Literally!

Why look at things on your back or in your bouncy chair, when you can roll over and prop yourself up?!?! The same old toys have taken on a whole new life as our Little Miss Camdyn seems to be enthralled with her new talents! She happily spent several hours today rolling from side to side and trying to get a better look at that cute baby in the mirror! While she is still hard to photgraph in such positions, Mom tried her best.......and by the way she's struggling to drag herself along, I am scared we've got an early mover on our hands!

Worth Every Mile......

For those of you thinking I must be a crazy woman to relocate 68 miles from the nearest stoplight.....indulge in the view from my window each morning. While we may be short on strip malls and fast food, we are definitely not lacking in sunshine and beauty. Although I was too busy yard saling to enjoy the great outdoors on Saturday, Baby Camdyn and I traveled the six miles up to the lake yesterday to basically just enjoy the view.....and we didn't miss the hustle and bustle of the city at all!

Working 9 to 5...What a Way to Make a Living

The whole point of my new part-time position was to spend some extra time with my daughter, while earning enough money to allow us meals not centered around Top Ramen! So you can imagine that my bubble was somewhat burst once we arrived in Enterprise only to find my employment had suddenly became a full time job, 8-5 Monday through Friday. However, there were two major perks! Due to the opening of a learning center, 20 hours a week were added for tutoring Middle School students and launching a mentoring program. Anyone who knows how upset I was about leaving my kiddos back in Portland, can imagine how thrilled I am to be working with adolescents again. Second, and perhaps even bigger....Baby Camndyn gets to come to work with me every day! You heard me alright, every second, every minute and every hour of EVERY day! Not that Mom doesn't love doing two full-time jobs simultaneously....but a few bouts of "baby burnout" have definitely arisen.....

However, I do have an amazing kid who is busily filling her days at the office with practicing her rolling on the floor, playing on her tummy time mat, concentrating on the plethora of toys she has been given by my co-workers, and occasionally hanging out with our receptionist to greet people as they walk through the door! Here are a few of my favorite photos of our working woman!

It Keeps Growing and Growing and Growing

Just about every time I look in the mirror, I think about how much I hate my hair. Not only do I have about 4 pieces, it is so incredibly fine that I have to use baby barrettes and I seriously worry about bald spots whenever I find a few hairs on the shower floor! So you can only imagine my relief when the first words out of our Delivery Nurse's mouth were "Look at all of that hair!"

Like most new moms, I was scared she would loose it all, but much to my surprise, after a slight bought of receding, we have continued to grow more hair than ever...except in that dreaded bald spot......the one that just keeps getting bigger and bigger the more active we get! While everyone assures me this is totally normal, I still have to wonder.....are they all this bad?!?!

I am so sorry Camdyn....I promise Mom will try to keep unflattering pictures on the blog to a minimum!

Lots of reasons to smile!

Although I sit and write amongst dozens of boxes, the biggest hurdles of the move are officially over. The U-haul has been loaded, driven, unloaded and returned and at 4:00 this afternoon, I am headed to the title company to sign the sales papers on our Portland house! The essentials to life with a newborn have been unpacked and Mom, Dad and Camdyn are trying to settle into our new Enterprise routine!

In order to ease the transition, Camdyn has been spoiled with a few new outfits and several new toys....and as you can tell she is all smiles! We promise more updates and photos from Enterprise as soon as I can find all the cords and camera materials admist all this chaos......

When All is Lost.....Try the Laundry

Like many baby's, Princess Camdyn has a period each evening where she can be rather unpleasant. During this time, our little Crankenstein has been very difficult to console, but we have been able to find a few simple strategies that can keep the major meltdowns at bay. However, since we have recently added teething to the mix, it has been impossible to make it through the seven o'clock hour without at least one major bought of rage. Last night appeared to be no different....

As usual, I was trying to accomplish 100 different tasks and no matter what I did, little Miss Camdyn was not happy. In desperation, I abandoned my To Do list and attempted both a walk and a drive to mute the continual cries, but alas, my regular bag-o-tricks fell short! As we arrived home, I set her on my bed and simply explained to her (while screaming above her moans), that she had lost the opportunity to compromise and that she would simply have to sit and fuss while mom folded the laundry. As I emptied the contents of the dryer onto the bed, a towel accidentally fell across her body...SILENCE. Not only did the warm linen cause her to cease her wailing, she actually started to coo! Encouraged, I proceeded to cover my child with the entire load of warm laundry, each article create more giggles and smiles! Our fun lasted for nearly 45 minutes...when sadly, I actually had to stop taking photos of this new phenomenon and fold the now wrinkled clothes, but I swear....it was worth every crease!

Happy Baby.....Crying Mom!

So, maybe the tears were a bit much, but I just couldn't help myself! After a month of trying, my baby girl finally started to laugh! Maybe it was the ridiculous photo shoot she was forced into, or perhaps the fact that Dad will be home in five days brought those little vocal chords to life. Whatever it was, I am pretty convinced it is just about the most wonderful sound in all the world.....and I hope I get to hear it for the rest of my life!

Ready for the Lake

While Mom, with her post-pregnancy body, is dreading the swimsuit season, Camdyn couldn't be more excited to show a little skin in the months to come. So, it was no suprise that during today's shopping trip she found the perfect suit! I was a little hesitant to buy after Dad's claim that "no skin would be shown before age 25" so Auntie Kristin stepped up to the plate (actually, the Baby Gap cash register), and made the big purchase! Since it was pretty cloudy and gray today we decided nothing screams rainy afternoon like a first swimsuit photo session.....sorry Dad....the girls won out today, but at least we stuck to the one-piece!

Big Girl Blue Jeans

Most new moms I run into shopping with their infant daughters are perusing the racks for lace-lined dresses and ribbon-clad jumpers. Much to their pleasure, they NEVER have to fight me for such attire! Whether scouring the clearance racks, visitng our favorite consignment shop, or buying "pricier" clothes with Grandma, this mom's eyes have been seeking the same item of clothing since the just about the day Camdyn was born.......the perfect pair of jeans!

Like her mother, Camdyn is not interested in being a fashion diva, rather we strive for comfort and practicality. However, the traditional baby jeans would not do....my little girl is WAY too grown-up to have snaps in her crotch. This mom wanted the real thing. So, after three months of searching, I was estatic today when I returned home from work to find Grandma Julie had snagged the perfect pair..... snap free and all. And as you can see in the pictures, it is apparent that little Ms. Camdyn loves her jeans just as much as her Mom!

Excuses, Excuses

It is ironic that despite the fact I HATE listening to excuses from my students, I find myself full of them for the lack of posts in the past two weeks! However, much like my kiddos at work, I am pretty convinced that mine are the most legit! 8) Not only did we have a pretty tragic digital camer mishap, but I also have been playing single-mom again as Jeff has headed back to work. This crazy schedule is only heightened by the choas that the end of a school year always brings, not to mention the pressure of keeping a spotless home (even with an infant) while you are trying to sell in this crazy housing market!
With all my excuses laid out on the table, and a stack of 52 Biology finals to grade, I at least needed to update a few pictures of our little princess before we loose all of our adoring fans! And I promise, we will be back in action again soon........