Happy Birthday Daddy,Welcome Baby Caleb, 7MONTHS OLD!!!

Last month, I asked for a show of hands... who could believe Joselyn was 6 months old... this month I will ask for another show of hands... Raise your hand if you can tell me what happened to the past month, and how did it go by so quickly that I am just now getting around to posting? sorry:(

Caleb Brian Nodine arrived to us (thank you Jamie and Ben) on September 8th, 2010. He is just perfect. Joshua is a wonderful big brother, but we all knew he would be. Joselyn and I flew up to NY for a quick trip to meet him. This is the only picture that I have, and it was stolen from my sisters facebook page. I was so excited to get up to NY that I brought my camera with a dead battery and no charger!!
In other news, Joselyn FINALLY cut her teeth! Both bottom teeth came in together after 3 months of teething!! WHOO HOO!

Our good sleeper, is not such a great sleeper these days due to the teething and more recently, a little cold, so as you can see by the picture below, we all need a little help getting through the night. I'M KIDDING!!!! Jay, Joselyn and I went up to Raleigh to celebrate his 30th birthday with our good friends Laurie, Matt and their little boys (Laurie also celebrated her 30th!). We had a great time, and everybody who was not nursing a child enjoyed many adult beverages:)

This is what happens when I ask Jay to watch Joselyn for a few minutes. Don't worry, it is tightly sealed!

Joselyn is still smitten with her Monkey. She still attacks him, but now makes sure she gives him cuddles too

The way Joselyn looks at her daddy (and the way he looks at her) makes my heart smile. Unless it is time to eat, she is all too happy to be spending time with her daddy.

They knock down block towers

And play video games (football only!)

and they support their team (no matter how awful) on game day

Her monthly quilt photo is getting harder to get, she prefers to be moving at all times when awake, which makes for some blurry pictures:) Here are the best ones.

7 MONTHS OLD!!!

(sorry, I couldn't figure out how to turn it around)

so that is all for now, I will try my best to get more frequent blog posts up! This is harder than I thought!!

6 Months of fun

OK, raise your hand if you can believe that Joselyn is really 6months old. Anybody? No? Same here! Not only did Joselyn turn 6months this week, but she also moved out of mommy and daddy's room and into her own room, started eating more food, has become a champion sitter. So many changes!
Joselyn did GREAT in her crib, she clearly loves it. I, however, did not do so great the first night. I cried and paced and checked on her 418 times. I came up with crazy scenarios and reasons why she was completely unsafe and it was a terrible idea to have her SO far away from me. Jay listened to my ranting, crying, and nonsensical ramblings, tried not to laugh at me and then reassured me, hugged me, told me everybody was safe and happy... and of course videotaped some of it.
Although I did not have the foresight to take a picture of her sleeping for the very first time in her own room, I did get a picture the next morning:) She looks comfy, doesn't she?

Joselyn loves to eat. She'll take whatever she can get. We started with cereal last week, but this week, really branched out and she tried sweet potatoes, peas, pears, and prunes(which were added out of necessity:( poor baby... no need to worry though, PoopWatch 2010 ended this morning. I would like to take this moment to thank Pampers. You did one HECK of a job today. I know it was more than you are used to, but you really held up under pressure!)

And the sitting! She started sitting unsupported a couple weeks ago, but toppled easily. Now, she can wiggle, wobble and reach without falling over. Her one weakness is Daddy, she still tips over when he walks into the room:)

Here she is waiting for me to get her blanket set up so we could take her monthly quilt picture. She's pretty excited about it.

And here she is. 6 Months old.

And to close... Joselyn has a monkey, its from daddy. It is bigger than she is, but she thinks she can take it. She taunts it, and yells at it and she always gives him fair warning that she is going to attack ;)

Here's a snippet for you....

"COME ON MONKEY! WHAT YOU GOT? MAKE YOUR MOVE, MONKEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Joselyn and the Monkey from Jodi Rivera on Vimeo.

Suprises and cereal

When Joselyn and I came home from California, Jay had already been in South Carolina for 5 days, and was going to be there for 10 more. After a few days at home, Joselyn and I decided that we had had just about enough time without daddy, so we decided to pack up, and go surprise him! I called the hotel and the manager was nice enough to let me into his room when we arrived. So we waited, and waited and waited. When I knew it was about time for him to come back, Joselyn and I headed outside to wait for him. We stood on the side walk and watched his truck coming. When he saw us, he rolled down the window and waved like I've never seen him wave before. You've seen Forrest Gump, right? Well, remember when Forrest is sailing his shrimp boat and he passes the dock where Lt Dan is sitting? Remember smile and wave he gave, right before jumping off of the boat?? THAT is the only way I can describe his smile and wave when he saw us. It was AWESOME:)

Joselyn was so excited to see Daddy!
And made sure to help him stay hydrated in the South Carolina heat

The hotel had a pool so one night we went and Joselyn went swimming

Other than that, we pretty much just hung out in the air conditioned hotel room

Over the past couple of weeks, Joselyn has developed a new skill...SITTING!

fyi- the shirt she is wearing in this picture was worn by her daddy almost 30 years ago, and was made for him by his grandmother:)

And last but not least... We tried cereal with Joselyn this morning (her very first food, not provided by mommy), and boy did she like it! She was very eager, and helped guide the spoon with each bite

Some live cereal action:)

First Cereal 5 3/4 months old from Jodi Rivera on Vimeo.

Joselyn's first trip to California!!!

I know I'm a little late on this post, but we have been BUSY! Lets start by showing you how big Joselyn is getting...

5 MONTHS OLD!!!


Joselyn has recently discovered Moe, and is quite taken with her. Moe is not quite as taken with Joselyn. She will get close, but learned quickly that if she gets too close, Joselyn will grab her face, so now she keeps a comfortable distance.

Joselyn has her very own way of getting around. She has since perfected this move and is very fast! Guess I have to make sure my floors are clean!

5 months from Jodi Rivera on Vimeo.

This month, we went to San Francisco!!! Joselyn finally met her Auntie Diana! The weather was perfect, but VERY windy. Joselyn LOVED it. We spent lots of time walking all over...

to the marina

Gina and Elise came down from Eureka to help us battle the wind!

We went to great restaurants, where Elise told us what was good to eat

We went to fisherman's wharf to see the sea lions

and Elise found a perfect spot to bust a move!

Elise Dancing in SanFrancisco July 2010 from Jodi Rivera on Vimeo.

It was a bit chilly, but there were smiles all around

We spent a lot of time just hanging out. Coordinating nap schedules was the challenge of the week!

Baby wrangling! Good job Gina!!

AND NANA!!! NANA CAME TOO! Nana was a big hit, Joselyn couldn't get enough.

Cuddles!

Elise liked to help with the baby. Here she is helping wash Joselyn's hair :)

and showing her how to swim in the tub

Our little water baby

Joselyn started to laugh last month, and although she will not do it for me, she will for Nana, Auntie Gina, and Auntie Jamie. So when Nana had her going, we got it on video!

Joselyn giggling in SanFrancisco July 2010 from Jodi Rivera on Vimeo.