Visit from Korinne & Reese

Yaye, Korinne & Reese came to visit us Monday!!! I feel so blessed!

For those of you who don't know, Korinne is one of my best friends. Her husband is in the Air Force & right now they are living in the Azores. Unfortunately Joey, her hubby, wasn't able to take leave or something, but she and her adorable daughter Reese took a HOP to the states! Luckily, her momma lives in SC, so we were able to see them!

Korinne, is a wonderful friend. She's honest, fun, encouraging, hilarious, kindhearted, real, and well, I could go on, but you probably already think I'm gay for her. lol.

Reese is so adorable & so smart! She's 1 1/2 years old. She is so obedient & loving to animals. I want to eat her little head!

We didn't really do anything special, then again, them being here was special in & of its self. We hung out at the house. I showed her a little bit of the base, since she might move here later. Here's some pics from the Partay.

Highlights of the Week 9/27-10/03

I was so busy this week, but I have a feeling that the rest of this year will be pretty busy.

I'll start with the most recent, cutest thing Will has done. He howled at the moon. We were driving around tonight & I saw the full moon & started to howl, so did Corey & next thing we know, Will starts "howling"! He is so flippin' cute! Granted his "howl" was his high-pitched babble, but it sounded like our howls. haha

So Monday I met with Corey's first shirt & am starting my training to become a Key Spouse.
Tuesday I had a MOPS Steering meeting (the leadership & people in comittees) & finally got to meet all the people in Special Events Comittee (4 people).
There was also a picnic for the Junior Enlisted Appreciation Day for the military, so Corey got home early & we love that!
Wednesday was hectic with little things. I made Shredded Pork in the crockpot & cookies for some friends of ours that are leaving.
Thursday was MOPS, we learned about throwing birthday parties, we decorated cupcakes, & had a 3-legged race. fun! haha
Friday was my "relax" day. Corey didn't have to go in until 7pm! We ended up going to Target in Columbia & got a few things to Autumn out our house. Love it! Of course Starbucks was involved.
Finally, today, Saturday, Will and I went out early to check out the yard sales on base (4) and we got a moving ball thing for $1!!! Awesome find because I really wanted one & almost bought it a few days earlier for like $30! We just hung out mostly this day. We went out to dinner at Hibachi & Will was adored by everyone who worked there. He got free candy too! (Corey will eat it). There is talk of him becoming the Hibachi Baby. lol. We got ice cream & now here I am at home.


I saw the first inkling of his upper left front tooth peeking out of his gums today! The right tooth is pressing on the gum, it's all white. He will be having a gap, because they are about a mile apart! haha. Good news is he isn't more drool-y or cranky.

Did I tell you guys he is growling (I think he learned it from Molly & Corey wrestling) & making slurp-y sounds (I think he learned from me trying to teach him how to drink from a sippy). Both are hilarious.

Now here is a picture of the world's cutest baby!

Bathtime video

We give Will a bath every night, unless we are out for some reason. We don't always wash, but he always gets in the water. Sometimes Corey or I will jump in with him. Now, just so you know, Will likes his bathwater hot. We used to use that little bath sensor thing you can buy & he hated how cold it was (& it really was!). We turn on only the hot water (set to 120) & turn on the shower, so it has time to cool down & also steams up the bathroom. So here is his little escapade with the shower... haha

7 months old

William Thomas Shipe...

is 7 months old today!

This month flew by!

Let's see Willzum's favorite things:
*trying to get my cell phone
*Molly
*eating Earth Best's Teething Biscuts
*pooping while in his exersaucer (everytime!)
*lil crunchies
*playing with paper
*his playskool pop-up toy
*his lovey (a small blanket with a bear body in the middle)

*straws

*peek-a-boo

Things he's doing:

*watching his shadow
*making wierd sucking/slurping sounds (I taught him when I was trying to teach him how to use a sippy cup)

*eating some finger foods (hasn't mastered getting little pieces into his mouth)

*rocking on his hands & knees

*getting from a sitting position onto his tummy/all-fours

*sitting up all by himself in the bathtub!

*starting to climb mommy & daddy to get up

*open mouth kisses!

*2 2-hour naps & 1 1-hour nap a day! Sometimes it's a little less than 2 hours.

*rolling over during diaper changes, nice!

I love him so much! We are having so much fun (me, corey, & wills) I hope life will always be this great!

all-fours, not mastered, but starting

teething biscuts

Hello Shadow

Bathtime! Grab the camera!

Mr. Blow-up Lion (we already had a Mr. Lion...)

This is the baby I get to see every morning, I heart his happiness

Lookin at the world with Dada

Daddy Kiss time

just cute

Menu Plan Monday~ Sept 21st

Starting back on posting Menu's! I always do menus now. I don't always follow them to a T, somedays frozen pizza just sounds better. BUT here is my plan for the upcoming week:

Breakfasts: oatmeal, cereal, banana bread, or toast & fruit

Lunch: salad, sandwich, chicken & organic Mac, taquitos, or pizza

Dinners:
monday: Lemon Pepper Chicken, garlicy broccoli, & rice pilaf
tuesday: Spinach Ricotta Lasagna, salad, & garlic buns (using leftover hot dog buns)
wednesday: BBQ Chicken, salad, & corn
thursday: Taco Casserole & fiesta rice
friday: Pulled Pork sandwiches, green beans & glazed carrots
saturday: Leftovers
sunday: Probably more leftovers

I plan on making banana bread or muffins (or both) because we have 3 bananas very ripe. Sometimes Corey eats them all & wants more, other times he doesn't even look at them. Maybe we'll have banana smoothies & muffins for Corey to take to work.

I also want to make whole wheat chocolate chip cookies, but we'll see. BTW, they are WAY better than with white flour (just remember to cut back on the flour, I leftout 1/4c for the tollhouse recipe).

For more Menu's or to do your own Menu Plan Monday, check out the Organized Junkie's site!

A Week in Review Sept 12-18th

Hey everybody,

I thought I would keep you all updated weekly, unless there is something special to write about.

The week before & half of this past week Corey was on day shift (6am-3pm). It was lovely, we were able to go on nice long walks after dinner & snuggle up alot with William before he went to bed & alone after he did. hehe. I miss it. He's back on swings (2pm-11pm).

So Saturday the 12th, we had a cookout with some of the guys from Corey's work & their wives/girlfriends. It was really fun. I met a few people & got to know some others better. The guys ended up playing video games & us women sat around talking, playing with babies, & ultimately playing boad games. People stayed over super late (think 1am), but it was all worth it.

Sunday we missed church. I was really bummed, but you can't always get what you want huh? It was our lazy day. We just hung out at home, took some walks, went to the dog park on base. I made minestrone, which is great because it fed us for a few dinners.

Monday I had a painting date with my friend Faith. She came over & I taught her the miniscule things I know about painting. I started painting 2 trees, we'll see how it ends up. If you never hear about it again... that means it's not good. haha. I mowed the lawn (I love to). I also found out our debit cards had been compromised!! So I spent the better part of the evening trying to sort that out.

Tuesday was Will's 6-month check-up. He is doing so well. 90th for height, 70th for weight, & 20th for head circumfrence (so weird, that last one). He got two shots & the nurse took a long pause in between them to ask a question. (Um Hello!!! My baby is in pain & wants his mommy, can we hurry this up & ask questions later?!) Other than that everything was dandy. Such a wonderful boy we have! By the time we got home Corey basically just had to check back in with work & he was off. Heaven! We spent time together, walked to our friends house & hung out for a little bit before Will's bedtime.

Wednesday Corey was back on swing shift (BOO). Faith & I went to Columbia to go to Michael's & of course we had to hit up starbucks! We also went to the BX & I finally bought a scale! Now I wont fall off the deep end of the weight gain 2009! haha. I still didn't have the whole debit card thing situated although each day I was trying!

Thursday was my first MOPS meeting of the season, Yaye! It was lots of fun & I don't know anyone in my group so maybe I'll make a lot more friends. I have to say one plus of Corey being on swings is MOPS is in the middle of Will's first nap (an important one), so he can just take his nap at home & I still get me-time. There are a lot of military wives in the group which is nice. So later in the day me & my buddy just hung out. We went to our friend Krystal's house, went on a walk & that's about it.

Friday it was raining so I couldn't go running! I did end up going to the grocery store spur of the moment (but I did make a menu & a list before we left). My friend Tracey & her daughter Hailey came over for a little while. This was the day we FINALLY got the whole debit card thing settled. Travis Credit Union gave us the $300+ back, but we are still waiting for our new debit cards.

It was a good week. Busy for us, but I'd rather be a bit busy than bored.
Next week I have on my agenda:
*Go to Lake Wateree with Corey's Flt.
*Call my Korinne, yes, she's MINE! haha jk
*get new jeans (I have 2 pairs & one has a hole!)
*call Corey's first shirt to become a Key Spouse
*paint my painting & the office wall
*post pictures
*start the cross-stitch I got at Michaels
*go running MWF
*settle dates to take pictures with the family

Vacation!!!

Ahhh I am so bad at this blog thing now.

We went on vacation to Maryland & California to visit family & friends. I wrote down what we did everyday & was planning on updating you all each week... well we know how that went down. So instead of boring you with a play-by-play, I'll give you the "quick" version.

Saturday thru Wednesday we were in Maryland. We hung out with Corey's family & friends. It was mucho fun & we went out a couple nights. It is really nice to have family.

Wednesday we flew to California. Will's FIRST plane ride! He did really well. The first flight & layover was a little off, but I chaulk that up to him being so curious & confused. He LOVED take-off & landings. The second flight he was out the WHOLE time. The third flight (yup, three) he slept the majority of the time, but did have a nice let's-pee-on-mom-3-times-in-the-tiny-airplane-bathroom time.

Anyways, we spent Wednesday thru Wednesday in California. We spent time with my family & a lot of our friends. We were very busy in Cali, we'd leave at 10am & get back aroun 9pm most days. We went out to eat everywhere, we had to get our fill of things not available in SC. Will did really great considering our schedule, being on vacay, & the fact that he was teething! Yup the morning we were leaving my brother discovered his teeth had cut through! Two teeny tiny pearly whites! They are my favorite teeth! I'll keep them forever!

So, when we got back to Maryland, there was a lot of relaxing & casually hanging with family & friends. Then Wednesday we headed back to South Carolina. It was nice to be back in my house, but we had SO much fun. It was a great vacation! Here are a million pictures for you!

Corey giving Will a bath at Mommom & Poppop's

Will taking of for California!!!

Cool Guys (My brother, Mike & Wills)

My Obason (grandma)/Will's Hebason!!

We went to the Jelly Belly, woot!

Will's Obason/my mom

Yum, this was delightful!!! I ate a LOT of food in Cali

Uncle Elliott

Totally passed out playing! haha

Hanging with the Relik's

Hanging with Tiffani Strong

me & Trinity, breakfast the morning we left

me & Bubba (brother), breakfast the morning we left

Iosif's first time holding Wills