Beach Baby, Beach Baby....

We decided to celebrate the holiday a little early and headed to Carolina Beach for the morning/afternoon. Come to find out most of North Carolina had the same idea. Figures. We enjoyed a little picnic and Sophie got to dip her feet in the ocean, a first for our little tyke. She LOVES her beach gear and laying in the sand but isn't to fond of the water just yet. Oh, and don't take her hat and sunglasses off without asking!!







After several hours at the beach we then headed to the Fort Fisher Aquarium in Kure Beach. Sophie was fairly drained from the heat so we stayed long enough to check out the huge fish tanks, some turtles and an albino alligator.



We called it quits and headed home. I think Sophie's picture best explains how tired The Leary family was.



Happy 4th of July!! Hope you have a great day!!

Five Months...

Sophie had her 4 month checkup a few weeks ago with her new Pediatrician. Unfortunately, another round of shots ending with a very upset baby. She is now 24 1/2 inches long and 15 lbs even. Almost 5 months old and exploring much more. She loves to play toys and banging is her new found talent. We've got her trying new flavors now. She eats a new veggie or fruit each week at dinner time. Last week was sweet potatoes with cinnamon and vanilla. We tried pears with nutmeg this morning [was a big hit] and I just made zucchini with oregano and garlic for this week. Yup, it's official...she's a goat just like her Daddy!



We've figured out that Sophie LOVES her animals. She likes to run her fingers through Owen's fur and grab his tail...although Owen's not fond of that. And Sampson is just the funniest when he fetches and squeaks his toys. Sampson is the only one who can make her laugh out loud right now. It's so FUNNY!! Check out the video we got a few nights ago...



Finally got some more pictures of our little tyke so, as promised...











Hope everyone has a great week!! Love, love, love!

Four Months...

We drove the longest distance I've ever driven, this past weekend, to our new home in Holly Springs, NC. Yup, we're finally here and getting settled as fast as possible. Of course the 25+ hour drive has Sophie not so happy about sitting down, EVER, right now. She was fantastic the entire drive up until about the last two hours. At that point, she wanted nothing more than to be out of her seat!! Luckily, Grumps and Memaw were to the rescue!! Grumps carried her all around and made funny sounds while Memaw fed, played and rocked her to sleep. It's always nice to have helping hands so THANKS AGAIN!!

Sophie turned four months old this week. She weighs 14.5 lbs [according to my scale] and is much more aware of her surroundings. She can grab her toys pretty well and LOVES to chew on things. We're awaiting a tooth in the next couple weeks, heck, maybe days. Oh, and she actually giggled at us a couple days ago. It's rare on a day-to-day basis but is so freaking hilarious! Mike and I were so proud and could hardly stop laughing ourselves.

Sophie keeping herself occupied on the road trip...


Sporting her new head-band...


And for the peeps that didn't get to see Sophie's "professional portrait debut", her are a few of our fav's...









Courtesy of Shari Henson Photography

We hope everyone is having a great weekend! Love, from afar!!

Three months....

Our little peanut is now 3 [plus] months old and is already developing quite a personality. She's awake for more hours during the day, only taking two or three naps. She sleeps much longer at nighttime and is quite the happy camper when waking up. She smiles all the time and has discovered her voice-box. Boy, are we going to have a talker on our hands. She loves to be center of attention and likes to join in conversations. She also got her first jumper a couple days ago. She was having so much fun bouncing around checking out all the neat toys.

Sophie's talking face...


Jumper in action...




We've learned just recently that Sophie is waiting patiently for real food. She watches us at mealtime and stares at our food. We let her taste apple sauce several days ago and it was so funny watching her flail her arms around. She was so excited and seemed to really like this new flavor. Guess we'll see in a few short months how she'll react to actual baby food. To be continued...

So...as most know we sold our house and closed last week. We are completely moved out and are now living at Extended Stay America. Fun times...let me tell you. Anywho - we leave Lubbock on May 22nd to drive the many hours to North Carolina. We're pretty excited to move into our new home and think we will love the community. I am still trying to prepare myself for the "goodbyes" as it's going to be incredibly hard to leave our families. Grandma Becky...look out...here come The Leary's!!

Here's a picture of our new home...


Happy Mother's Day!! Love, love, love!!

10 weeks...

Let me start off by saying when Mike and I travel together it's ALWAYS an odd adventure. We have the worse luck ever, I think. It started off with a 4 hour flight delay then another hour long delay in Dallas. To top things off, our rental car died on us right in the middle of traffic! We've come to the conclusion that we could write an entire novel of all the "mishaps" we've encountered while traveling and yet we're still up for the next stop.

First rental car experience...


Sophie was EXCELLENT!! We got several comments from fellow passengers about how good she was, so that was a total relief! House hunting on the other hand was not so good. We found one house we liked but have pretty much ruled out New Hampshire as "our home" destination. It's beautiful but just too darn cold!

As I mentioned last post Sophie had to get her 2 month checkup and shots. Poor thing...OR WAIT...poor me and Mike too! That's got to be noted the worse thing to watch your child go through. Just awful...and that pouting lip!! Mike and I were almost in tears ourselves. But on a lighter note - she's growing rapidly and weighs 12 pounds 2 ounces, measuring in at 22 1/2 inches long. She's holding her head up even more now and tries to lift up on her own. Of course, our little Stevie Wonder isn't quite stable enough on her own so we've really got to watch her. If she's not laying flat she's liable to wind up face first [hummm...no that hasn't happened...YIKES!]. Oh and she loves to blow spit bubbles and is trying to figure out what her hands are good for.

2 Months Old...

Sophie will be 8 weeks old tomorrow!! I can't believe I am actually saying that as our time with her has sure flown by! She weighs roughly 11 pounds now and I'm sure has grown at least an inch if not two. She's packing on the layers and has completely filled out her cheeks.



She lifts her head like a champ and her legs are incredibly strong. She now smiles ALL the time at Mike and I and we just can't get enough of those! NEWS FLASH...Sophie is totally a big girl now...she loves to be held but don't dare carry her any other way but upright [unless of course she is falling asleep]. She must see what's going on around her and will make it very clear if she can't see! She loves to be changed or should I say she likes to be naked? Crazy woman...hopefully she will keep her clothes on when she's old enough to take them off herself...SHEESH! Car rides are great, she sleeps almost instantly. Bath time is still questionable.



She's sleeping very well now, sometimes five hours until she's ready to eat again which is AMAZING for me! She had her first taste of rice cereal last week mixed with formula and gobbled that down in a matter of 10 minutes. I think I can conclude that she likes it, what do you think?







On a sad note...

Our house has sold...well, officially on Thursday if the couple doesn't back out. I'm figuring not...so we'll most likely close on April 30th. It's all happened so fast and we will be homeless come Thursday!! :( We fly to Boston this weekend and are checking out the housing in New Hampshire, so cross your fingers we find something while we're there...or not, if you're one of those people who don't want us to move. I wouldn't blame you!!

Well, that's all the news and updates I have for now. Sophie gets her two month shots next week and will fly for the first time on Friday. I'll be sure to post as soon as I can with those updates!!

Sorry for the novel...Lots of love to everyone reading. We hope you have a great week!!

One Month...

Sophie turned 1 month old yesterday!! Our little princess is so alert and stares at objects for long periods of time. Although she is not exactly responsive to all sounds just yet, we're anxiously awaiting the day she starts to smile at us. [Of course, when gas isn't related] Loud noises scare her so we know she hears, I think she just likes to ignore her crazy parents!! Smart kid!

We've been adventurous lately taking her out and about. We've gone on walks around the park with Sammy and have been to see Grandparents. She's even made her first trip to the mall!! Here's a picture after our walk yesterday...



She's had a few baths already but I never have had the camera handy. Mike was prepared last night though so here are a couple pictures of her getting all cleaned up. She's not real sure if she likes the water yet and definitely doesn't like getting her face washed.





And here's our little monster, clean and ready for bed...



Hope everyone is having a great week so far!

Love, love, love!!