Good Morning to my beautiful blog readers! This past weekend went by too fast, and it drained all three of the Howland's in the process! The sun was beaming all weekend long, and we spent all of our time outdoors. Ava bug got her first real "tan" and Justin kind of resembles a lobster with his sunburn.  We even managed to fit in a trip to the drive-ins! I can't even begin to tell you how fantastic that was. Ava bug went down shortly after the first movie started, and that gave Justin and I some one on one time. She slept straight through the ride back home, and that was also fantastic!

Here lately I've noticed that Bug has become restless when it's time to go to bed. That's usually not like her because she's always been such an easy baby to put down. She's cutting teeth five and six right now, and something is telling me that teething is the culprit behind her new sleep patterns. Friday night was the first time we have ever driven around our neighborhood in order for Ava to fall asleep. It's funny to us because usually you hear about people with their little infants riding around, trying to sooth their babies... and here we are with our toddler cruising around in order for her to go to sleep. The ride worked like a charm, and Justin and I got a little late night snack as an added bonus.

On another note, National Breastfeeding week is among us and I couldn't be more thrilled about all the participation in my home state! I was so bummed our family missed the big latch on this year, but I'm hopeful that if i'm pregnant now (more on that later), I'll have a chance to go next year with baby # 2 and Ava bug. For those of you who aren't familiar with the big latch on, take a peek here. Thousands of breastfeeding mama's around the globe come together to nurse at the same time. It's a very powerful movement, and I'm so glad our state has so many locations for registration.

Sunday morning (after a delicious IHOP breakfast), I took a pregnancy test... and it was negative. It was still a bit early to test, and I'm only seven days (as of today), past my ovulation date. I plan on taking another test in a few days, and it's been a lot of work not to get my hopes up over a potential pregnancy. Justin and I are both staying optimistic, and are still really excited about our future babies!

That's all i've got for now guys. Justin just started online classes to obtain his BA in history, and I've been more than willing to help him get into the swing of things! I'm so, so proud of this man!

Happy Monday all!

♥- Leilani

New York

Can I just say I haven't felt this "stress free" in weeks! Prior to block leave I was stressing hard core about packing, driving fourteen hours with an infant, etc. I didn't think I was going to enjoy the car ride up the coast (I didn't) I thought our dog was going to go nuts sitting in the car for so long... Surprisingly, everything worked out. I have to say, (I've said it before) we have got such a good baby on our hands. Ava was an absolute champ the entire drive up to New York.

When she slept, I pumped and expressed milk into bottles. She woke up, I changed her, fed her, entertained her and then she'd go right back to sleep. No major fusses. She did have one meltdown, but I held her and rocked her while Justin pumped gas and got refreshments; She was all smiles after that. I was even able to get like 6 hours of sleep while my husband drove straight through. We avoided Washington D.C. traffic and Justin was ELATED about that. Since we arrived in New York, the week has been nothing but family, family, exploring. Our last visit up here, I took ONE MILLION photos. Thanks to Cooper (our pooch) my SD card was destroyed (so devastated about this still) So this time around, I am retaking pictures of EVERY memory, mark, or significant place in Justin's life, here. The hospital he was born in, first school, the house he grew up in, etc. The cool part is, our daughter is in these pictures. Aside from this, Ava has been melting the hearts of her aunts, grandparents, and her great-family members.

Since we've been in New York our little sprout has changed so much. She's scooting on her tummy time mat, she's gotten bigger and she just jabbers SO MUCH. It doesn't matter where we go, we get compliments on her demeanor ALL THE TIME. Random people at diners, random people at stores, you name the place, there is bound to be someone there that notices how crazy amazing our 9 week old is. The weather in New York is one million times better than the weather in Georgia. We have all enjoyed having 70 degree weather with ZERO humidity. There is a cool breeze that gives me nothing but smiles. I love being in the city! Buildings EVERYWHERE, homes that are like little ticky tacky's, and restaurants MINUTES away. This is the complete opposite of our home life in Georgia. Being in New York reminds me of how much I miss my home state. Here's a little scroll of some memories from my husband's childhood!

Cooper is also having a ball in New York! He made friends with a family dog up here! Buddy! Justin's father lives out in the country and boy has Cooper LOVED being out on his land. 

Overall, I'd say this trip has been awesome! Ava is thriving, Justin and I are rekindling, and we are spending time with family. Really couldn't have asked for a better trip! 

26 June 13

Yesterday was quite a busy day for me. Aside from my mommy duties, I've had a lot on my plate. Planning activities for block leave, which is just around the corner.

Organizing a barbecue at my home this weekend with over 15 people in attendance. Mainly soldiers. But I don't think I've ever hosted anything with more than fifteen people before. I'm also tying in a celebration for my husband. He found out last week he is being promoted! I'm so proud of him. He's got such a great drive when it comes to career goals. 

On top of that I managed to get my blog post out about reintegration. I got a lot of feedback on that, and I'm glad I was able to give an honest account. My biggest pet peeve with bloggers is how sugar coated details can be. I love the nitty gritty truth of things, that's always my goal in my writing. On an Ava note, my sweet little angel is getting bigger. She is over eight pounds and as of yesterday, she fits into her three month clothing. Another bittersweet milestone. Of course, I love that my girl is growing, but time is definitely passing us by. July will be among us in no time!

I figured out that I am going to be that type of parent that dresses their child up for all the special holiday's throughout the year and wants them to have pictures taken! I have tentatively scheduled another photo session for Justin, Ava, and I. I can't wait to see how those turn out. Also, I'm finally able to start reviewing some of the products I've received for Ava. Those include: cloth diapers, hemp inserts, and organic baby shampoos. There are a lot of various products that I will be doing sponsored reviews for as my baby grows and her needs change. So far one of the companies I took an interest in, that I will be reviewing for is

Citrus Lane. I've gone over Citrus Lane in a previous post.

I am receiving a newborn box and it should be arriving sometime next month. I'm anxious to see what type of developmental goodies are enclosed. I'm so excited about all the fun activities that will be taking place in just a matter of days. It feels good having all of our friends home.

Sunday Morning

Mornings are my favorite part of the day.

1. I wake up in the arms of my husband 
2. I wake up to Ava's sweet smile
3. More often than not, the sun is shining through our window

Justin has been home for two weeks and we definitely have weekend, morning routines down. Last night, Justin woke up with Ava every single diaper change and he changed her. I obviously had to nurse her, but it was nice getting a few extra moments to sleep. In the morning after Ava nurses, this is what we get. Our cuddle bug snuggles with daddy so well. He has gotten so comfortable with being a daddy. He uses baby talk with her, he kisses her sweet little cheeks, and consoles her when she cries. Our sprout is a lucky girl. Daddy would move mountains for her if he had to.

 

 So the biggest conflict I've had lately is nursing Ava in public places. Not all establishments are nursing friendly. To make things more challenging, we've had some crazy rain here lately. Running out to the car with baby, stroller, and infant seat would have left us all soaked! I'm trying to get in the swing of things with a baby on the go, so I've decided to stick to my guns and not give Ava a bottle until she is six or eight weeks. Even then I don't plan on making bottle feeding the norm in our home. I've realized how important it is for me to feel comfortable nursing her, wherever we are. I'm feeding my baby. There is nothing violating about that. In a little over a month we will be heading to New York for block leave. I have decided instead of giving Ava a bottle, I'm going to nurse her the entire trip. I have become a strong advocate for breastfeeding and nursing Ava has become a big chunk of our bonding time. Justin is on board with this as well. It definitely makes things easier knowing he supports my decisions.

Today will be a busy day. We don't like having Ava on the go all the time because she's still just under a month old. Our weekend was more laid back, as we had people over, rather than going out. So today we will be shopping, potentially finding a tattoo artist for my husband, and dining out at one of Justin's favorite restaurants. 

Go out and make your Sunday fabulous people !