7 months old

Out little Zoey is now 7 months old and I thought I'd write a entry dedicated to this sweet little girl.

Lots has happened to Zoey since she turned 7 months. First, she is now not only able to crawl, but climb. She climbs up me, the couch, the coffee table...you name it, she climbs it! If she keeps this up she'll be walking before we know it.

The other big thing that has happened since turning 7 months is that she has gotten her first tooth. It is the bottom front tooth and it is CUTE! I would post a picture of it, but she won't let me near her mouth.

Since she has turned 7 months she has also gotten more adventurous in the pool. She kicks, tries to put her face in, and splashes like a maniac!

The last big thing she can do like a champ now is hold her own bottle. She actually prefers to hold it and roll around on the ground while she eats. What a crazy kid.

I bet you didn't know so much could happen in just four days. Well...it can! Now you know a little more about my 7 month old sweetheart Zoey Jane.

Just another day at the beach...

It's been rainy and hot here the past few days so we thought we'd take advantage of the nice weather and take a trip to the beach. As you can see, mommy is a little more excited than Zoey at this point.

Then she started to get a little more excited about the trip and made funny faces with me.

Since it was over 90 degrees outside we only stayed at the beach long enough to take a few pictures, walk along the ocean, and put our toes in the water. Based on Zoey's reaction I think we will be making a few more trips to the beach before we move to Nebraska. Next time I think we'll bring Coco along so that she can play too!

And just for fun, here is a video of Zoey talking. Enjoy!

T-minus 16 days and counting!

We are about two and a half weeks away from moving to Omaha and I couldn't be more excited. First of all, I will be VERY happy to stop living out of a suitcase (which I've been doing for six months now) and start feeling settled again. Secondly, I can't wait to start getting nursery furniture and finally giving Zoey a room of her own. I love the kid, but I am sick of sharing a room with her! Most importantly, I am ecstatic that Billy and I will get to live under the same roof after spending the last 6 months in two separate households. I am ready to get our lives back to "normal" and start exploring our new home. I am looking forward to making friends, going to church together, and just having a chance to be a family.

On a completely different subject I finally have some new pictures to post. People have also been asking me to put up a video of Zoey crawling so that will be inclu

ded in this entry as well.

"Hi mommy! Do you like what I've done with the place?"

Zoey decided that she was going to open the door to the entertainment center and pull out all of the DVDs. Coco watched from the couch looking very concerned.

Now for the moment you have all been waiting for...ZOEY CRAWLING!!!! **Crowd Cheering** Enjoy the video and I guess I'm out for now.

Quick update...

Zoey and I are sick today so I thought I'd make good use of my lazy day and fill you in on what has been going on as of late...

Zoey is officially eating baby food now! I can't believe she is growing up so fast, but I guess is was bound to happen. So far she loves carrots, squash, and sweet potatoes. I learned the hard way that she is not a big fan of green beans...she spit a mouthful at me and it all ended up in my hair and down my shirt. Every time i put food in my mouth now she will open up her mouth really wide and stick out her tongue with hope that I will give her my food. Just keep dreaming Zoey!

Besides eating baby food Zoey is now crawling. CRAWLING. She has decided that following Coco around the house is her favorite game. she crawls up to Coco, grabs her paw, and tries to eat it. This leads to Coco kissing her to make her stop and Zoey sticking out her tongue to kiss Coco back. Gross Zoey! I'll post some videos of her crawling once we are all healthy and up to the task.

Zoey is up from her nap so I guess I'll post more some other time.

Family walk behind our apartment

This afternoon Zoey, Coco, and I decided to go for a walk around our complex and explore our new home. I thought I'd bring along the camera so you all can see where we are living for the next couple of months. Here are the the results of the photo session. Enjoy!

What should I do with this book?

I know...EAT IT!

My townhouse is the one on far left.

Lots of shells.

There are a ton of these trees out here and the flowers smell AMAZING!

Coco couldn't decide if she should get in the water. She did.

Adventures in Mississippi...so far

As I sit here and write this post I have Zoey trying to play with the laptop. She is curious about EVERYTHING now and tries to grab (and eat) anything she can get her little hands on. So Far we are enjoying it out here on our own. It has been really nice to see Billy for a little bit each day and have Zoey get to know her awesome daddy. The two of them have really seemed to hit it off! She has daddy wrapped around her little finger and she adores and can't get enough of him. Coco has been very happy to see Billy as well. With him around she actually gets to go on walks and have some extra attention. Although it is lonely here most days it is all worth it when we drive to the base and see Billy each night.

The place we are renting in Ocean Springs is nicer than I had expected it to be. Here is the lovely view from our back porch:

It really nice to be doing dishes and see that out the window. I hate the bugs out here, but I do love the view!

Zoey and I have been trying to keep busy so that the days aren't too boring. So far we have taken Coco on walks, played around in downtown Ocean Springs, gone to the Special Olympics and done LOTS of swimming.

I have been trying not to be too stressed out taking care of everything by myself and I think I'm doing a pretty good job. I am starting to make friends and I think that soon I will have lots more things to keep me busy.

Zoey is getting fussy so I guess that is my cue to say Goodbye. Until next time!

Time to get serious...

I have always been shy about posting on our blog because I am not very great at writing down my thoughts. Now that my life has been taking lots of unexpected turns, i feel that it is high time to start filling people in on what is happening in the lives of Rochelle, Billy, Zoey, and Coco Pickett. Here is a top ten list of the things that have happened to us in the last two years:

10. I finished school.

9. Billy stopped selling alarms and started working for NFIB.

8. Billy got VERY sick.

7. I got pregnant.

6. We bought a house in Springville, UT

5. I went blind (temporarily).

4. Billy quit his job.

3. Billy joined the Air Force. (Can't get pics of Billy in uniform to download)

2. We had a baby girl named Zoey Jane Pickett.

1. Billy went off to Basic Training and Tech school and I moved to Arizona to live with my sister.

I know it isn't very detailed, but at least you have an outline as to what has happened to us!

Ok, let me tell you about my awesome daughter Zoey Jane Pickett. She was born at 2:59pm on November the 12, 2010. She was 6 lbs 2 oz, and 18 inches long. The 19-hour labor was rough and we had quite a few complications, but in the end we ended up with the sweetest little girl on the planet! Zoey has been such a joy in our lives and I know that she will continue to brighten our days for the rest of her life. Since Billy had to leave for Basic Training when she was 6 weeks old I have had the tough job of raising her by myself until we are able to live together again. It has been hard work, but totally worth it and Billy and I know that it is what is best for our family.

I'm very excited today because next week I am moving to Mississippi to be closer to Billy while he is in tech school. We can't live together until he is finished on June 27th, but at least I get to be ten minutes away from him. He is studying to be a computer systems programmer for the US Air Force and I couldn't be more proud. He has been so happy since he's joined the Air Force, and I can't wait until we are a family living under the same roof again.

Lets see...Coco has been having a blast in Arizona with my sister's family. Monica was kind enough to let us live with her while Billy's gone, and it has been a huge blessing. She and her family have helped me take care of Coco and Zoey and allowed me to take some much needed naps. It will be hard to leave them, but we'll happy to be with Billy again.

I'm going to head to bed, but I WILL be posting on a regular basis so that you all can watch Zoey grow and follow us on our military adventures. I'll post more pictures in my next post. Here a a couple of Easter pictures as a parting gift. Until next time!