daddy sundays

before anabelle was born a friend told us about daddy sunday's. in their family, daddy is the dominant parent that day. he gets baby up, dresses baby, plans baby's day, etc. well, yesterday was daddy sunday #1 in our house and it went great! we decided that i would go out with a girlfriend while chris & anabelle had some alone time together. i knew the two of them would be just fine. i wasn't quite sure how i was going to do without them. we all really enjoyed ourselves, though. i had a delicious lunch with amy followed by relaxing mani/pedi's. we just chatted & laughed - it was a really fun afternoon. chris and anabelle went to the mall to do a little christmas shopping and then to the small flying leatherneck museum just outside of miramar. yes, he's an overachiever when it comes to being a daddy too . . going out & about with anabelle on his first date with her. nice work, muggy! here is a pic he sent me while they were at the museum.

just finished anabelle's 5 month slideshow. enjoy!

signs

just thought it would be funny to see my signs from chris' last 3 homecomings.

stick with what works, right?!

anabelle is 5 months old!

our big girl - 5 months old and amazing!

*will get the slideshow up this weekend

happy homecoming

here is how it all went down . . .

chris was dash 5 coming in. here is his jet landing.



taxiing in.



walking out to his jet. crazy how 7 months can seem to fly by but that walk felt like it took so long!



chris climbing out of his jet. oh my goodness, i can really see him!



hi muggy, i have someone i want you to meet!
*a tissue might come in handy here



welcome home, daddy!



chris getting welcomed home by the base commanding general and his squadron commanding officer. anabelle wasn't so sure about everything going on . . and i'm not sure chris was either.



as you can see by this next one, anabelle & chris have adjusted quite well & are having a blast together. i love watching them.



today is chris' first day back at work so anabelle & i are hanging out at the house, doing a few chores, planning dinner, and running a couple errands. having chris home has been amazing (as expected) and we are soaking up every minute. thanks 'red devils' for bringing him back to us!

thanks megan & patrick for taking all of the pics and video. i SO appreciate it!

where does family start? it starts with a young man falling in love with a girl - no superior alternative has yet been found. - winston churchill

sneak peak

singing

have you seen this clip from the movie 'elf'? love it!

click here to see video

here is anabelle's version from this morning:

"daddy, i love you . . cause you're my dad . . and i love you!!"

good morning, world . . . thank you!

right now anabelle is sitting in my lap as we listen to chris' recording one more time before we leave to pick him up in a little over an hour. i figured it could be a sort of 'refresher' before she meets him for the first time!

i can't believe today is today. i never imagined i'd be one of those girls having a baby with their husband gone. i sure missed him (missed him like crazy!) but it has been an incredible, life changing, and empowering 7 months. thanks again to everyone who supported me/us and loved on me/us from all parts of the globe. we are so blessed and grateful!

there will be oodles of pictures. i'll post them when i can. in the meantime . . . hallelujah!!