Update!

Wow! It has been SO long since I have posted a blog! So sorry about that :)
We are doing good! We have made it over half way through this deployment and we are anxiously awaiting February since James will be coming home sometime that month for a little R&R! The months of November and December saw us in Arkansas. It was great to be back home for a while and share the holidays with our families. Connor's first Christmas was exciting :) but I cant wait for next year when we can have a lot more fun with him! It was a little sad being away from James during the holidays, but we made the best of it! We are back in Hawaii now and loving the warmer weather!
Connor is doing great, growing more and more each day! He is rolling all over the place and sitting up on his own. He is a babbling fool! He is constantly talking! I love it though :) Being a mom is more amazing than I ever thought it would be. Its one of those things that you dont fully understand until you experience it. But I absolutly love it and wouldn't trade a SINGLE moment!!
Ok enough of the mushy stuff :) we are just trying to keep busy so the remainder of the deployment passes by and we are all together again! Hopefully it wont be this long until I have another post, but I wont make any promises :) being a "single mom" is quite time consuming!! I would post pictures, but sorry you will just have to check facebook for those! Connor is asleep for the night and I am soon to be there myself!
All is well with our family, and we hope that all is well with yours too!!!
Aloha! :)

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Solid Foods..?!?

So, I have been doing my research on solid foods. When to start them, what to feed him and whether or not to make my own. I know doctors tell you that you can start with Rice Cereal at 4 months but I have read that the American Academy of Pediatrics reccomends that you breastfeed exclusively for the first 6 months of life. I am sort of confused here as to what I should do? I had only planned to breastfeed for about 6 months so should I be introducing all new things to him at once??

I am also considering, when he does start solids, making my own baby food. It actually seems quite easy. All you do is steam or bake the veggies (or fruits, but fruits are easier to just mash up) and puree them with a little water or breast milk then you freeze them into ice cube trays in one ounce servings. I already have a food processor so its not like it would be an expensive start up.

I am just wondering what you other moms out there think of this and what your opinions are, especially on the waiting 6 months for solids topic. Please advise....

I love Skype!

Skype is amazing! It allows me to see my husband through out this year long deployment which has brightened my spirits many times. It is so comforting sometimes just to see his face. I love how even when we have thousands and thousands of miles between us I can tell what he means just by the look on his face. I honestly wonder sometimes how couples did it "back in the old days" when all they had were letters, which took months to get back to their love. But sometimes skype can be a curse...sometimes it leaves me feeling more sad than anything! I guess sometimes just seeing him on a computer screen just isnt enough, and it often makes me realize how long it will actually be until I can see him in person or hold him in my arms again. I guess that is where skype has left me tonight. We just finished talking and I felt so sad when we had to hit that "end" button. But then when I think back on the conversation that we had it makes me smile because I know that we had fun talking to each other. I am very thankful that James and Connor get the chance to see each other (even if Connor doesnt understand yet) since they havent actually got to meet in person yet. I know James enjoys it a lot.

All in all we are good...I know its been a while, I've kinda got my hands full :). I booked mine and Connor's trip to Arkansas for November 12 - January 4...Hope to see you all while we are there!!!

Its been a while...

Wow I havent updated in a long time! Things have been kinda crazy and I honestly never even get the chance to sit down at the computer anymore, unless we are skyping with James. Connor will be 6 weeks on Tuesday, my oh my where did the time go?! He was 5 pounds 11 ounces when he was born and as of yesterday he weighed 9 pounds 10 ounces!! He has really been growing! My family left about a week and a half ago and its just been me and Connor since then. Sometimes it gets really hard being alone. I am thankful for good friends here for me to lean on, but its just not like family. I miss having the help with Connor. I have been blessed with a very good baby, but it is still a little crazy at times. I am just having to get used to how much he can be content on his own and how much he wants to be held...and it differs from day to day. Today he was loving on some mommy!! He just wanted me to hold him ALL day! He would fall asleep in my arms and I would go to lay him down and he would wake up crying. So finally me and him snuggled up on the couch and took a good 45 min nap. It was really sweet :). I really miss James, but the time has seemed to go by fairly fast. We are already about 2 months into this deployment...only about 10 to go! Being a mommy is one of the most wonderful things I have experienced in life. It seems like no matter how my day is going, one smile from him makes everything better. He is just so sweet!!

Connor's first beach trip!

Sittin in the boppy

Hanging out with mommy

Motherhood

Well things have been pretty hectic (obviously, its been forever since I have posted a blog entry!). Being a mom is wonderful...I absolutly LOVE my little boy!! I always wanted to have a little girl, but I have realized having a boy is awesome! It helps that he adores his mommy :)! He is such a good baby, which is great b/c my family will be leaving soon and I dont know how I would handle a cranky baby. I always feared he would have colic or something and fuss all the time, and how would I be able to handle that alone?! Well so far, so good! I feel like I havent been able to slow down with my family here, and my dad comes in 2 days and I know we will really be busy once he gets here. But Im so glad they are here...my mom is trying to convience me to hire her as my nanny ;) haha! Please keep me and Connor in your prayers as pretty soon it will just be the two of us!

James is doing pretty well in Iraq I suppose. One of his friends, another Platoon leader in our Company was killed in action by an IED (Improvised Explosive Device) on July 21. That has been pretty difficult. They arent even a month into the deployment and already had the first casuality, and while any casuality is difficult, its even harder when its a friend. Please keep the family of the soldier in your prayers, and all the guys who were serving with him. Also, please keep the soldiers deployed in your prayers for a safe return.

1 month down, 11 to go!

Connor has arrived!!

Connor David Cochran was born on July 13, 2010 at 4:43 pm Pacific time.

He weighed 5 pounds and 11 ounces and was 19 1/4 inches long.

We got to come home from the hospital on Thursday July 15. He is a great baby! He is still having issues with sleeping at night but he does not fuss at all. He is such a sweetie..he has definatly stole our hearts already! Stay posted for updates on him...I will do my best to keep the blog updated, but as many of you moms know, we are busy!!