McDaniel Family

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-18T05:59:00.000-08:00

I was surprised to find out that Camden's Thanksgiving program today was also a sit down, served by the teachers breakfast! It was awesome! I helped set up which earned me a prime seat to take pictures and taste the food...for quality control of course. Camden was an Indian and they sang a few songs and recited their monthly bible verse. O Give Thanks Unto the Lord: For He is Good Ps. 118:1Camden did a great job, considering he missed the last two days of school and practice.

Here are some pictures. I couldn't get the videos uploaded.

Enjoli

Fall pictures 2011

2011-11-09T10:47:00.000-08:00

Preview of our fall pics:

Soccer Party and Trophy

2011-11-08T12:51:00.000-08:00

Camden participated in Fall soccer and had a great time! Here he is getting a trophy and an award from Coach Rivera.

Halloween

2011-11-08T12:43:00.000-08:00

We went over to Fort Meade to our friend's, Addison and Aubrey, house to trick or treat. Conner and Brady also came with us, which made three transformers and two princesses. Base housing is so nice for this b/c it is safe, the people are so nice, and its all good candy from the commissary! However, Cinderella (Addison) and Belle (Aubrey) couldn't keep up in their princess shoes. I stayed back with Amanda to hand out candy. (we gave out about 10 bags of candy!)

1st school field trip to the farm

2011-11-08T12:38:00.000-08:00

His class took their first field trip to a local farm where Camden was able to see cows, horses, pigs, and chickens. We also had the chance to eat some apples and pick a pumpkin.

Camden's First LSU game

2011-11-08T12:33:00.000-08:00

LSU at Tennessee! Camden did great at the game too! We met Mimi and Papa from the airport and had some fun pulling for the Tigers!

Charlottesville, VA and Monticello

2011-11-08T12:29:00.000-08:00

A quick weekend trip to Charlottesville, Virginia to visit Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's house, Star hill Brewery and most importantly Raising Cane's!

B&O Railroad Museum

2011-11-08T12:26:00.000-08:00

Our good friends Addison and Aubrey have passes to the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore. We go once to twice a month to toddler time and ride the trains. Camden still really loves seeing these trains!

Swim lessons with my friend Addison

2011-11-08T12:23:00.000-08:00

Swim lessons this summer with Addison...I now can jump in and go under the water and kick with a kick board.

Camden turns 3

2011-11-08T12:20:00.000-08:00

Just a few quick pictures from Camden's Cars 2 movie/party in the park...

Back online

2011-08-28T17:13:00.000-07:00

Yes, it has been a while. I hate to say that I forgot my log in and password which was a big part of the delay. I blame pregnancy brain. Its getting so bad I will bring something home and can't find it the very next day. Now that I have remembered, I can start adding new posts and there are a lot of new things going on to blog about. Just in time too with the up coming holiday season and arrival of baby brother after Christmas.

Mick and I are very excited about the arrival of baby McDaniel in/around January 29th and Camden can't wait to be a big brother! He told me yesterday that he can't wait to have play time with his brother and dad. Looks like I might have some Saturday's off in my future!

Some other BIG news is that Camden turned 3 in June! I can't believe how fast he has grown up. My sweet little boy is now a big boy who is into superheros and transformers. Potty training came and went without any issues, he has graduated away from "baby cups" (sippy cups), will jump into the pool and put his head under water (Ms. Molly helped him with that one), and can run like the Flash as he scores a soccer goal (thanks to Coach Rivera). Like his father he is really into sports and is checking off a lot of ball parks by going to see the Oreoles, Nationals, Ravins, and LSU Tigers play ball. He even picked out his new big boy sports bedding as he gives up his toddler room to make room for little brother. Now onto winter basketball or at least we will participate until mom gives birth. His favorite things to say are " No I not" and "I have a question" which is followed up with quite a few "why's".

Mick also started a new job at the Pentagon in June. All he will let me tell you about that is that he gets home around 7:30 instead of 8:30 at night. (You take what you can get)Plus, he now sports a fashionable blackberry which up until now he has very carefully avoided having in his possession. However, come July of 2012 the McDaniel's will be moving south again to Montgomery, Alabama since Mick was accepted into ACSC (Air Command and Staff College). I wish we would be able to stay there for a little while but 11 months is all they will allow this southern girl.

Well onto some pictures and new posts...

Wiggles, Dinosaurs, and more...

2010-11-13T10:31:00.000-08:00

Saturday fun...

2010-11-13T10:25:00.000-08:00

Major McDaniel

2010-11-13T10:09:00.000-08:00

This is my first post in a long time...sorry for not keeping it up. However October has been a busy month for us. October 1st was Mick's birthday and he also pinned on Major! Almost the entire family came up for the big event. We don't have our hands on the official pictures yet but here is a picture of the cake and some of Russell and Alice Ann's outing on the Mall.

London 2010

2010-07-06T10:05:00.000-07:00

We took off on our second to last trip while we are in Germany. This was our last Ryan Air flight to London over a long weekend. London has a ton of things to go do and see. To make it all fit in the time we were there we did yet again another Open Air Bus Tours! These are great because Camden loves all modes of transportation these days and we can easily pop on and off. Plus, its a great place to just sit, with some natural air condition, and just rest.

This trip had something for everyone. Camden got to go to a Wiggle's Concert on Sunday, Dad got to go to the Winston Churchill Museum, and I got to go shopping in Piccadilly Circle (the London Time Square/Shopping district). Too bad the pound/dollar rate is not as good as the euro/dollar rate.

Here are some great pics from our trip!

Almost 2!!!

2010-06-16T11:33:00.000-07:00

Camden is almost 2!!!! Yeah!!! I can not believe my little boy is turning 2 already; where did the time go?

Camden has become a carefree, spirited, challenging and trying little boy. I wonder where he gets it from? Just yesterday he was eating dinner and tells me "pea nose". In denial I told him there was nothing wrong with his nose to later determine that he did in fact stick a pea up his nose. Luckily, he knows how to blow his nose and a snotty pea went flying across Mick's car. I guess that broke the "no food in Mick's car" rule. (Mom, Dad, and Richain...do not say he gets it honestly because I already know) Im just thankful I found it before the doctor did...that would have been embarrassing.

Today, we went to his 24 month well baby doctor's appointment where he received his last shot till he turns 4! I know he is excited about that. He also weighed in at a whopping 26.46 lbs and grew to 34.65 inches. His head is well per-portioned too. Now we just need our last two baby teeth to come in!

I will try to post some pics tomorrow!

Enjoli

Easter Fun

2010-04-04T16:28:00.000-07:00

Finally a good picture...once we gave him a preview from his "Thomas" Easter Basket

Wasn't about taking a picture before church

No pictures mommy

swimming

2010-04-04T14:25:00.000-07:00

Fun in the sun!

Easter Party

2010-03-27T08:13:00.000-07:00

Camden and I went to Mom's class Easter party. As soon as he saw this blow-up toy he ran to it! I have a video but it is too long to post. :( He also hunted for Easter Eggs and visited with the cows which lived next door. I was exhausted at the end of the party!

more pics....

2010-02-07T21:49:00.000-08:00

Finally...a new post

2010-02-07T14:03:00.000-08:00

Well,

I have not been doing my motherly job of posting pics on the blog...so here are a few. Camden is enjoying playing with his new nanny...Pop. Rick has been doing a great job taking care of Camden...basically making sure he stays busy so I can get my comps written. I'm half way through and taking a much needed break this weekend so I can help cheer the Saints on.

Right now Camden's favorite thing is the Wiggles. He even has his own sign for it. He signs as much as he talks so Im thankful for a little bit of communication. Of course he loves to say Bubble Bath too and he gets upset if you don't give him one right when he asks for it. He will run into the bathroom and put his hand up on the shower curtain then jerk his hand to his chest and grunt or say bubble bath. It is so cute. He really just wants to play with his Thomas the Train bath toys. He always has something Thomas in his hands...a Thomas book, train, bath toy...and he can self play with his train set all day.

The other thing about Camden is that he loves to dance. I guess watching Dancing with the Stars when he was a baby had a lasting impression. Of course the Wiggles has greatly contributed to his skills. In fact, he loves going to Mexican restaurants which blare Mexican music. Last night we went to eat Mexican and Camden danced in his high chair the entire meal. Other tables around us noticed and were laughing. Of course he makes us want to dance right along with him so its probably a sight to see everyone at a table dancing.

Mick, is doing great too! He just got back from his second conference in a different location from where he is stationed. I guess it is good to get away from the same old thing. He looks forward every week to Mongolian food night and watches a lot of football.

Well, the Super Bowl is about to start so I got to run....Who Dat and GEAUX SAINTS!!!

Enjoli

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-25T10:57:00.000-08:00

I wanted to get some pictures up as quickly as possible so Mick could look at them. These are from Uncle Vince's camera. I will post more pics. I got up before Camden this morning and went out to the living room to set skype up with Mick. We had the computer positioned so Mick could see Camden walk out of the bedroom and find all his gifts from Santa. He went right for the dump truck. Then he wouldn't stop playing with his car ramp. Once we opened gifts it was Thomas the train all the way till he got to the Cozy Coupe. Way too much fun this morning!!

Note: you might want to start at the bottom of pics and go back up.

Wanted to play in it without it put together

Thomas the Train was very popular

Santa thank you for my gifts

Santa, I love this dump truck!

Camden and Major enjoying their presents from Santa

The winner of which toy he would go to first

Sorry the flash wasn't on b/c I had it on burst to get the shots of him coming into the livingroom. They didn't come out that great.

Mick and I were all ready for Camden

Merry Christmas Major! A new bed and a new toy!!

Christmas Eve

In mom's room at school

2009-12-18T12:51:00.000-08:00

Going to the party

On the way home from the party

Crackers at the party

We went to Mom's school Christmas party. Camden enjoyed the bagel bites, crackers, and cupcakes. Needless to say that a good nutritious meal was not on the menu yesterday. He didn't care much about the party but he does like the buckets of toys and puzzles.

Bath time

2009-12-17T16:51:00.000-08:00

A cool picture of Mimi's and Papa's girls giving their boys their bath.

so cute

2009-12-17T15:38:00.000-08:00

Having a little fun with Rudoph around the kitchen

Concentration 3

2009-12-16T21:36:00.000-08:00

Concentration 2

2009-12-16T21:26:00.000-08:00

Concentration 1

2009-12-16T17:53:00.000-08:00

Camden playing with some toy boxes. He was stacking them on top of each other but just got too mad b/c they kept falling when he was putting the last box on top. So he started just shuffling them around the table. I love how he smacks his lips while he is concentrating. I just want to pick him up and squeeze him!

New pics

2009-12-16T17:50:00.000-08:00

Camden getting into trouble with an ink pen

Trying to get the camera from me

Witches Brew

2009-11-06T09:13:00.000-08:00

I finally found these pics on the camera card. Here Camden is at St. Patrick's Preschool Halloween party. I did get him to put on both the head and the hands to the turtle outfit and get a picture. Then we went to Mimi's room where she made some Witches Brew and Camden immediately put him hands in it to figure it out. Then we enjoyed the orange fruit punch that was in it and some Halloween rice crispy treats some of the parents made. yummy!!!

Love'n his stroller

2009-11-06T09:02:00.001-08:00

Camden and I are all geared up to go out during the day and enjoy the beautiful weather here in the states. In Germany we would be bundled up in sweats right now. So we both have new running shoes and a new jogging stroller and we have been out exploring some of the subdivisions around Mimi and Papa's house. Camden seems to enjoy the ride!

Since he runs wherever he goes I bought him some running shoes so that he is properly equipped to get wherever he is going.

Trunk or Treating

2009-10-28T19:51:00.000-07:00

Tonight we had Trunk or Treating at my parent's church. We first went for dinner, then we went into a Sunday School room where Camden was the youngest to decorate an owl mask with washable markers, then ate a cupcake. He did feel the need to not use his hands when eating the cupcake which will probably be the only time I laugh at him doing it instead of fussing at him. It was too cute to make him stop. He really got into trick or treating and figured it out by the second car. He would even try to give back some of the candy and then sometimes ask two or three times for candy. He had a lot of fun and we did too.

He wouldn't wear the hat at first but did manage to ask for candy with his monster bag.

This is my second cousin's little girl Ali. This was their first encounter.

Mimi helping me decorate my owl

Mommy helping me go around for some candy. Grann we got you some cotton candy (in mom's hand)!

We finally got this hat on!

Ball, Ball, Ball

2009-10-21T08:54:00.000-07:00

Ball, Ball, Ball

2009-10-20T20:13:00.000-07:00

Its the Great Pumpkin Camden & Tyler

2009-10-16T15:08:00.000-07:00

Today cousin Tyler and I went with our moms to the St. Lukes Methodist Church's Pumpkin patch to take some pictures and pick out some pumpkins. We found a 6 pumpkins that we liked. We even went around in a wagon and picked them all out.

The Houston Zoo & Hermann Park Train

2009-10-14T17:47:00.000-07:00

Today the cousins went to the Houston Zoo and to ride the Hermann Park Train. We saw lion and tigers and bears! Still a little too young to enjoy the zoo but I'm sure we will be back...plus Camden needed a nap.

Tyler enjoying the train ride

Choo-Choo

Camden on the train

Playing with a leaf

Just saw the Sea Lion show

Sesame Street USO show

2009-09-23T06:32:00.000-07:00

Loves the new spin/light up Elmo toy they gave us!

Camden and Michael during part of the show...blank stares from these two guys!

...again with the toy

Family pic at the show

Today we went to the USO Sesame Street show. We got to see Elmo, Cookie Monster, Grover, Zoe and Rosita. We had to sit/stay in one spot for an hour so that was the biggest accomplishment of the day for Camden! He kind of bounced off the backs and laps of other parents sitting around us.. but no one seemed to mind. Camden and I went with one of the lieutenant's wives who has a 20 month old little boy named Michael. She also had her newborn little girl who slept through most of it in her pouch.

They gave out these little spin/light up Elmo toys which all the kids loved! Most kids, including Camden, loved them so much they kept trying to take other kids toys...and other kids sippy cups. There were other free bees there too. A Talk, Listen, Connect DVD on Deployments, Homecomings and Changes. I thought this might be the show were Elmo's dad deploys and I was right. At one point kids were allowed to go up and hug the characters but Camden didn't seem too interested in going up there. At that point he was playing with his wipes from the diaper bag.

Before the show we went over to the other Captain's house to visit his family and their new little baby girl. They have a 3 yr old girl, I think she is 3 maybe 4, Claire who was home and tried her best to get Camden away from the front door to play. However, he wanted to hold up the front door for the first 20 minutes we were there. It wasn't until we gave him the drum sticks from their Rock Band that he came away from the door. He didn't even care that I was holding a baby either!

We also had our 15th month appt and things are still great! Camden weighed in at 22.5 lbs and 32.5 inches long. So 95 percentile for height and 25 percentile for weight. Doctor said he will probably be in the 25 percentile for weight till he is 2 when he is out of the toddler picky eating phase...plus he will stay in the 90+ percentile for height therefore his weight is not a concern. He is just tall and lean! Tell that to his pants...plumbers crack all the way!

See everyone real soon!!

Love,

Mick, Enjoli & Camden

Major we miss you!!!!!

Fall is here!

2009-09-17T11:07:00.000-07:00

Mom look at my pumpkins!

Can't have too many in the wagon with me

This one is a little weird!

In Steinbach, fall is here. So Dagmar had her fall outdoor decorations out. Camden just couldn't help himself. The girls had fun pulling him in the wagon.

Ball

2009-09-17T00:09:00.000-07:00

Scooter

2009-08-29T10:47:00.000-07:00

Around the house

2009-08-29T10:34:00.000-07:00

Playing after church

Don't mess with me!

My bobby pillow keeps my book right where I can see it.

The best view in Berlin

2009-08-29T10:08:00.000-07:00

We would try to find parks where we could let Camden loose to run since he has to be in his stroller all day on these trips. Here are some really cute pics of him running around with his dad.

This is how you have to change a diaper in Europe!

Don't leave the toys at home!

Me and my dad!

Funny faces

zoo 3

2009-08-21T08:15:00.000-07:00

zoo 2

2009-08-21T06:52:00.000-07:00

zoo 1

2009-08-21T05:02:00.000-07:00

Early August pics

2009-08-15T01:23:00.000-07:00

The girls love to put Camden in one of their strollers and run him around the yard.

Another favorite past time of the girls and Camden. Im very careful with this toy b/c I fell out of a wagon when I was a child and busted my head open...stitches and all. I don't want to buy any outside toys here b/c we are leaving in two months. However, Dagmar says she has an electric police car that Camden can have but we have to order a new battery from Toys R Us.

At Burg Eltz Castle. This castle has never been destroyed so it is an original medieval castle with all the original furniture and weapons. Rick Steve's favorite castle in Germany and it is only 2 hours away. According to Rick Steves and our Dutch tour guide who spoke perfect english....the Eltzs family was very clever to always be on the right side of anyone who was conquerring in those days. They would pretty much marry off cousin Bertha or let cousin Gusthof go fight in another country's army so they would not be attacked...very clever! Plus, this castle is not on top of a mountain where you can see it. It is down in a valley and you had to climb a lot of steep mountains to walk to it. I'm glad Chris pushed Camden in his stroller up the mountain....I took the down direction. Chris, Julie, Camden and myself went and Camden was not having not being able to walk around. However, there were too many stairs and drop offs that were not child friendly. I had to hold him for hours!!!!

Rick Steve's didn't say that the castle was under renovations! Nice medieval scaffolding!!!!

Eating breakfast

2009-08-06T23:26:00.000-07:00

My mom says Camden has been changing so much and they need more videos and pics. So here is a pic of him eating breakfast. If you look close enough you can see the cresent shape bruise on his forehead from him walking blindly around the kitchen yesterday with his snack cup in his mouth. This totally blinded him but he still decided to walk around. Needless to say he ran into the cabnet busted his lip and gave himself a nice bruise across his forehead! I had a longer video but it wouldn't post.

My own miniture space walk

2009-08-06T08:40:00.001-07:00

So Julia and Nina have been camping in their backyard. They have an air mattress inside the tent which makes it a miniature space walk. He had fun in there with them....

Making some changes...

2009-08-05T00:04:00.000-07:00

He looks upset in the picture but he wasn't...he actually likes being up at the table.

Eating eggs!!!!

Cute new pjs

what is in that bottle Mr. Wobbly

So meal time looks a lot different around here.

First, I bought Camden a booster seat b/c he is just not fitting in his high chair anymore. Then I bought him a Kiddopotamus place mat which has a trough that catches his food. Its funny b/c he will notice he has food in there and will eat it too. With all of his new dining supplies he is now at the big table with mom and dad. Plus, Major is now locked away during meal time b/c Camden finds it hilarious to drop food on the floor. Once I let major in and Camden finished eating and out playing...he finds it funny that Major goes over to the chair area to see if I left anything on the floor. This will be our challenge for a while.

I did all of this in hopes that he will start eating better....and I think it is working. We are eating scrabbled eggs (I figured out he doesn't like cheese in them), muffins, and orange vegetables(carrots and sweet potatoes) more regularly.

Small battles won but we are making progress.

In Bruges

2009-08-04T23:39:00.000-07:00

I don't care about the boat ride...I want your glasses!

This book looks interesting

No highchair so daddy improvised...of course I wanted to sit with my back to dad so he would have to reach around to feed me

walking...

Walking...

I have tried to post a nice long blog post, but kept having problems. Now I don't feel like re-creating it for a third time. Call me and I will tell you more about the pics. Sorry...

About to embark on our canal tour

Michelangelo's Madonna and child, only statue to leave Italy during his lifetime

Camden in the basement of our hotel where there is are relics from Vikings in 900AD. The hotel was built on top of a site where the Flemish people built a fort to protect them from the Vikings then it was converted to a church which Napoleon demolished.

The view from our hotel, included the Basilica of the Holy Blood, where there is a crystal vial of Jesus' blood

Camden enjoying the view

In Bruges

2009-08-04T11:45:00.000-07:00

Walking around for the first time on a vacation.

Eating waffles..loved the powder sugar on top!

About to board our canal boat tour

Mussels in Brussels...no wait...mussles in Bruges!

Camden thought this little boy was funny so he made a face at him.

more pics cont...

2009-07-27T06:01:00.000-07:00

I love to play with the curtain in my room. Tons of fun!!

But sometimes I like to crawl behind the rocking chair just b/c mom can't get to me back there.

Hanging out in my chair!

I was trying to get mom to laugh at me. I make funny breathing noises with this thing too.

My obsession with Major's bed continues...

more walking...

2009-07-27T04:02:00.000-07:00

Walking...a little too good!

2009-07-27T00:43:00.000-07:00

Here is one video of Camden walking around the house. He is getting too good at walking and I am no longer sitting down. Im always running after him and explaining why you don't touch this or that. I will try to post more video soon.

Enjoli

Strange Behavior

2009-07-26T23:51:00.000-07:00

Well,

I have taken a much needed break from school work this morning to post some pictures so everyone isn't mad at me. I still have to finish my paper so this will be short.

So, back to the post...is it strange behavior that he is playing with his dirty clothes? He can reach inside his hamper and grab whatever is on top. I guess that means I have to be better at getting the laundry done. Anyway I thought I should get a picture of him waling around the house with the clothes in his mouth. Too funny!

standing...at that's it

2009-07-01T07:36:00.000-07:00

This was one of three takes on him standing and me trying to get him to walk to me. He didn't move!

Walking...a little

2009-06-30T23:14:00.000-07:00

Of course when I have the camera out he doesn't want to do any long distance walking. But he can...I promise. We are up to 10 steps and he can stop and stand and then continue walking. He can also stand for long periods of time. Plus, he can stand...squat down to pick something up...and stand back up again. I know people say you want them to walk so badly and then once they do you wish they weren't. Well, I think Im going to be ok with him walking b/c my physical therapist says that is when my back/neck will stop bothering me. He is getting too heavy to hold...plus he squirms to get down so it is getting worse for my back.

We had his 12 month well baby appt last week and his first dental appt too. He weighed 22 lbs and measured 30 inches. Now that I think about it I forgot to get the percentiles so I will have to look them up.

Daddy at work

2009-06-30T22:43:00.000-07:00

Mick was the narrator at the change of command yesterday. I thought he looked so handsome in his uniform in front of the huge American Flag.

Its not everyday you get your picture in front of a flag like this!

I like this one the best...nice profile babe!

sneaky sippy cup

2009-06-30T09:25:00.000-07:00

Camden and I have been struggling to move him to the sippy cup. Alice Ann has sent some...I have bought about 5 different kinds and he just looks at you and tosses it on the floor. So I have taken him out of his high chair and put him in his "fort"/play area with the cup. I caught him drinking his milk out of the cup Alice Ann sent him and decided I won the battle today.

Birthday ballons part 2

2009-06-23T01:25:00.000-07:00

Birthday ballons part 1

2009-06-23T00:01:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Camden!

2009-06-22T12:47:00.000-07:00

Little Sluggers 1st Birthday was our theme! I think he had a good time...his mom and dad certainly did. One of the guys wife who work with Mick made the cakes. They were so good. We had some left over and we are enjoying every last bite. Camden had his fill at the party. After cake we opened the gifts from the party goers. Then the next morning we opened family gifts with dad on Father's Day.

I really like this cake!

The cakes turned out really cute for our baseball theme!

Here comes the birthday boy

Not a fan of the hat

Let him eat cake

2009-06-22T11:48:00.000-07:00

Camden's birthday was so much fun! First of all Mick's pre-deployment training was cancelled so he was able to attend which made me very happy. We had a Bar B Q with some of our close friends in our landlord's/neighbor's car port. Everyone had a great time watching Camden pick at the cake's icing with his index finger. Some of you might know that Camden is a pointer...he points and scratches and picks at everything with his index finger. Im not surprised this is how he tackled his 1st birthday cake. I had to interrupt him to dig his whole hand into the cake so he wouldn't eat just he icing. I gave him a taste and then he spit it out. Then he went at it on his own and really liked it. Here is a short video of him eating some cake. We had a longer video but now can't seem to locate it on the card reader. I will try to put a couple pics up too but most of you have gotten the shutterfly album of 70 of the 200 pics we took.

Playing in my room

2009-06-17T12:34:00.000-07:00

So Sweet!

We now touch every book we read looking for the fuzzy part. This book is what started it all.

I must touch the fuzzy part

Never need an excuse to grab the camera and take some pictures of Camden playing. I love the light in his room so I taking pictures of him in there is a lot of fun. We spent part of the day at the vet with Major getting his shots updated and having his paw checked out. His fingernail from the infected nail bed fell off this past weekend. It doesn't bother him and the doc said it looks good. You can even see the new nail growing already. Certainly didn't stop him from playing with Camden. At one point Camden made his way over to the pile of birthday presents in the corner. I think he is going to love opening them on Saturday.

I have noticed Camden is getting a lot more cuts and scrapes now that he is trying to get around. I first thought it was just b/c he is my son and I was so accident prone as a child. Then I thought he is just a boy and will have many, many, many cuts, scrapes and blood. Then I read on a Johnson & Johnson website that babys his age do get more cuts and scrapes as they start to walk. I guess they are trying to sell me some ointment.

Wherever Major goes Camden will follow. Then Major moves out of the way and then Camden goes back to what he was doing b/c Major moved. Second time Major has gone over to Camden's new chair and made himself comfortable. However, I think Camden will always chase him out of it.

Major play with me...

I want your toy

I got it

Having a good ol time

2009-06-15T11:57:00.000-07:00

This past friday, Mick had a family day so he was off. We went on a family outing to the new park on base by the base housing to try out the swings. Camden didn't seem to like them...but they were as big as him. So we moved onto the slide...didn't really like that either. And then onto a bike rocker...he was ok with this. I think it was just too sunny (this is not really a complaint since the sun doesn't really shine here)

The other pics are from the kitchen today. I gave Camden his very own basket of kitchen things to play with while I cook. Major stay clear...Camden has a wooden spoon!

Danke Schon Kussel

2009-06-15T06:40:00.000-07:00

So we went to Kussel, Germany this weekend w/ the Herrmanns to another festival. This one was the hat fest but they weren't selling any hats. I don't know why it was called this.

Mick and I have been to many festivals to Kussel w/ the Herrmanns b/c it is very close to us. The very first fest there was a band who we stayed to listen to who kept saying "Danke Schon Kussel" over and over. For those who do not speak any German, this means "Thank You Kussel". They were screaming it just like any band would but this was our first time to hear a German band, who sang only English songs.

Now that Camden is with us we don't stay as long. On our way to the car this past weekend we past a Merry Go Round. The girls wanted to take Camden on it so here are some pics. Camden seem to really like all the bright lights. Nina barely fit into the trackor she wanted to take him on.

1st Hair Cut

2009-06-08T09:43:00.000-07:00

They are out of order....

Hey Lady...be careful up there. It took me my whole life to grow those hairs!

Such a handsome hair cut!

We had to take a break half way through...hi Mrs. Amy!

Watch those ears!

Im too sexy for this smock!!!

So this is my good friend Amy Rubiano. She went with us to watch Camden while I got my hair cut today. The plan was to start with my hair and then cut Camden's after my appt, but they started while I was getting washed. So Amy is in the pics holding Camden and I joined in to take the pictures once I was all good and washed.

As you can see he was not about the lady being too close with the scissors, but the end result was soooo cute! Such a little man!!!

All in all... a good day at the hair salon. In Germany you never know what you are going to walk away with but I decided to go to a different lady after my almost German mullet last time. This lady is British and I love what she did. So no more waiting 4-6 months to go home and get a hair cut.

more pics...

2009-06-03T14:10:00.000-07:00

My new piece

Nina was working with Camden on standing up in the yard. He only took a step once and then was done with it.

Good shot of the bottom 4 teeth

Just waking from his Sunday afternoon nap with dad

Just a Sunday afternoon...

2009-06-03T13:45:00.000-07:00

I really just wanted to get a pic of this cute outfit he wore to church. Mick says Im not allowed to dress him in these clothes very much longer. I wish he wasn't hanging onto the Diaper Genie.

Look who found Camden's birthday present. I have to put it away...I just couldn't wait to show Camden and see how much he likes his chair.

Camden in his Baby Einstein gaze

Hanging out with dad

The Sebring/McDaniel Germany Trip

2009-05-29T09:58:00.000-07:00

Hohenschwangau Castle

Neuschweinstin Castle (Cinderella's castle)

Walking the grounds at Linderhof

Family pic at Linderhof

We had such a great time with Mick's sister, husband and cutie pie little girl. They were able to catch a trip to Paris during the week and then the 6 of us plus the dog rented a "micro" van and drove to Garmish to see some of King Ludwig's castles. Just all of us in that tiny van was something to see. The German Alps are just beautiful and we did hit some of Austria on our way out of Garmish. I have now seen them in the summer and winter and I can't tell you which time of year is my favorite...b/c I like them both. We ended the week off with a Memorial Day bar b q with our German neighbors...always a good time!

Can't wait to get the two babies together again!!!

Together again

2009-05-20T13:03:00.000-07:00

Hey cousin Grace Ann. Welcome to Germany!

Lets check out this new toy!

Camden loves his cousin...he was trying to give her a friendly smooch

It took 11 months before mom pulled this gate out. It sure keeps me out of trouble.

The Sebrings have arrived in Germany! GA did really well on the flight over and was ready to play with her cousin Camden. They played really well together. Camden even tried to get her to play with some of Major's toys. They even talk to each other when they get going. We will try to take some video soon.

Ireland

2009-05-18T00:29:00.000-07:00

Waterfall we came across while we were lost. Im suprised we didn't get lost more often since we left the GPS in Germany. We turned even though it said "dead end"... why...I don't know...but the road ended b/c the road was washed away. No wonder people were looking at us like we were crazy.

This is in Howth. We drove out here to see the coast...it was cold, wet, and windy. Camden was sleeping in the stroller so he is not in the picture.

At Brunaboinne or Newgrange

Brunaboinne- Irelands most famous ancient monument. It was thought to have been constructed in 3200 BC, which is 600 years before the Pyramids in Egypt and 1,000 years before Stonehenge. It is thought to be a passage tomb or ancient temple. Here is something I found online about the winter solstice sun which they reinact for us. (This means we have to stand for a minute in complete darkness...oh yeah...we are in a tomb too!)

Newgrange is best known for the illumination of its passage and chamber by the winter solstice sun. Above the entrance to the passage at Newgrange there is a opening called a roof-box. Its purpose is to allow sunlight to penetrate the chamber on the shortest days of the year, around December 21, the winter solstice. At dawn, from December 19th to 23rd, a narrow beam of light penetrates the roof-box and reaches the floor of the chamber, gradually extending to the rear of the passage. As the sun rises higher, the beam widens within the chamber so that the whole room becomes dramatically illuminated. This event lasts for 17 minutes, beginning around 9am.

A more relaxing day at the Guinness museum. Mick had to drink mine...too dark for me!

Mother's Day

2009-05-10T08:43:00.000-07:00

He was such a ham taking pics...too many to chose just one I thought I should post.

What a great day! Mick got up and completely took over.It was awesome to have the day off. It was so nice to only take care of myself this morning. Mick started off by taking care of Camden, Major and going to get some breakfast from the bakery down the street. He said there were a lot of dads and kids down there today getting moms all sort of delicious pastries.

Then Camden gave me a new IPOD shuffle and Mick uploaded some songs on it for me and created a song play list....I mean what a great dad! Then we went to church and they gave us flowers and chocolates. Then we spent the rest of the day napping and playing with Camden.

I wish we celebrated Mother's Day once a quarter!!!!

I did make Mick go outside and take some pictures of our first Mother's Day.

Happy Mother's Day to all of you moms out there!!!!

Cousin Tyler

2009-05-08T03:43:00.000-07:00

Richain had her little boy on May 5th. He was 7 lbs and 10 ozs and measured 20 inches. He is now out of the NICU and is in the room with mom and dad. They all leave the hospital today!! Here is the story: She woke up on her due date May 4th having contractions. She had a doctors appt that afternoon. They had been watching her fluid levels b/c they were getting low. When she went to her appt her fluid was at a 2 so they admitted her. She labored through the night and then after getting her epidural she spiked a fever and they thought she had an infection. So...They wanted to do a c section before the baby got the infection. The c section went fine and Richain did really well through the whole thing...in other words...I think I might get another nephew or niece out of her. :) Tyler had to spend a couple days in the NICU to rule out the infection, which they did, and it was protocol for him to stay there since he was admitted there. Such a shame b/c I know Richain wanted him to be closer to her.

What a Mother's Day she is already having!!!

Amsterdam

2009-05-08T01:58:00.000-07:00

Family shot

Camden had a great time in his Baby Born. He loved it and would be pointing with both index fingers and talking to us. He would also kick his legs and swing his arms. As you can tell in the pic...Mick was on the defense all day.

What we will not do on vacation

Anne Frank's House

On the train to Amsterdam

Well, we headed off to Amsterdam last weekend...and no we did not see the tulips. We stayed with our friends up in Geilenkirchen Germany and then took the train into Amsterdam for the day. We thought going to Anne Frank's house, The Van Gogh Museum, and Heineken would be more important. However, we loved Amsterdam and want to head back to see the tulips next year before we all check out of here. We only have pics of us outside of Anne Frank's house and Heineken. However, the Van Gogh museum was my favorite b/c they had Starry Night there on special display....plus we could bring the stroller in and we got to avoid the long line (internet tickets helped too). One thing I loved about Amsterdam is that there are mainly young people there, who all speak perfect english, and they do not touch babies! We almost got out of there with out some touching Camden but an old French weird eye guy decided to eat next to us at the Doner Kabab place and he wanted to talk to and touch Camden the whole dinner. We inhaled our food b/c we did not enjoy our Doner date. Here are some pics of the weekend in Amsterdam....

Updates

2009-05-08T01:34:00.000-07:00

Dad and Camden's nap time...someone is a bed hog...they were both snoring but I couldn't get it on video

The boy loves Chicken

Too cute: Mom help Im stuck...first I have to get a picture

another pic of him crawling

Well this is what else is new with Camden....

He is pointing a making a constant sound for things. It is his language. Most of the time it is "Doe Doe". We have officially said that his first word is "mama". What a great Mother's Day gift. We think he knows Im mama b/c he is addressing me and saying it. Mick is a little disappointed since it is normally "dada". He says this is not a good sign.

He has become super interested in Major's water and food bowls. As soon as he reaches the kitchen he turns up the speed and hauls butt straight for them. I have beat him to them every time so far. I have to think about moving them. He also has been pulling up on anything he can. He loves to pull up on the TV. He will find the remotes and bang them on everything...I have officially moved them to a safe place. He today pushed the power button on the TV and turned it off. I guess that will be the new game.

He has also started making a new noise with his mouth. He takes his tongue and clicks it with the top of his mouth. He does it all the time now.

Major is starting to warm up to him even more now. They play a lot more with each other. Camden will slowly crawl towards him and Major will start dancing and backing up while doing his play growl. They sometimes get into a staring contest. Other times Major will follow Camden around while he is crawling through the house. I guess he is hoping he will really start to play with him.

Breakfast

2009-05-08T01:26:00.000-07:00

I guess I was getting a little sentimental b/c Mother's Day is coming up. I gave him his breakfast bottle this morning and just thought I needed a picture. Camden and I are about to get a busy schedule. I researched a Water Babies class for him since he loves going to the pool now. We are going to be taking the class with the girl who took Camden's new born pics. She has a 2 yr old named David. We are hoping the two hit it off so we can start some play dates together. The two of us went this week and we had a great time in the baby pool and then we ventured into the recreation pool and I pushed him through the water like he was doing the Titanic pose at the front of the ship. We even played with the pirate ship stirring wheel. Sorry no pics of that. But Mick and I are going to take him on Saturday so I will take some more of him and dad swimming.

Tooth Fairey Update

2009-04-28T07:30:00.001-07:00

Camden is determined not to let me look in his mouth. However today I saw 3 teeth on top and then his 2 on the bottom. I think a 4th top tooth is on its way.

Other updates: Camden has really mastered crawling. In fact if he is heading into the kitchen and I saw "no" he puts the speed on and hauls butt into the kitchen. Then he laughs when I catch up to him and take him back to his starting point in the living room. He also is walking with his push toy by himself. Although after a couple steps he gets down to crawl...his preferred method of transportation.

At the pool

2009-04-27T01:07:00.000-07:00

He liked this pool better

The order is backwards....here he is after he came out of the water...not liking water in his face

Coming out of the water...

,,,going into the water

splashing in his favorite pool...dad says we might get a summer pass but mom is going to get me a kiddy pool that Grace Ann and I can play in!

Swimming part 2

2009-04-26T09:21:00.000-07:00

Here is another video of Camden swimming!

Lets go Swimming

2009-04-26T08:43:00.000-07:00

Today after church we went to the brand new swimming facility on base so Camden could go swimming. It was his first time to go swimming and I think he had fun. He started off testing the water with dad and then we found out really quick he doesn't like to go under water. Here is a short video of us swimming. I will post all of the swimming pics on snapfish b/c we tried to take a lot.

More adorable pics

2009-04-24T12:47:00.000-07:00

Cool pic!

I love hanging out with mom!

Mom wanted me to play with the flowers but she didn't think I would eat one

His normal look these days

Mr. Drool

2009-04-24T12:19:00.000-07:00

My new accessory...drool

Mom...I thought you said Ducks fly

Major loves me!

I have a big forehead

LSU and a little Chicken & Banana

2009-04-22T09:58:00.000-07:00

Camden eating Chicken & Bananas, his mom's favorite Indian dish. However this version is not Indian or has curry in it. Major is assuming his new role...clean up crew.

Chicken & Bananas, it took his a while before he started playing with the paper plate.

Mike the Tiger

No LSU occasion necessary to sport all of our LSU gear.

This is the only time Mick doesn't mind me dressing them alike

Hanging out

2009-04-22T09:38:00.000-07:00

Hurry up, Im about to take off

My mischievous look

Mom, I just don't want you to take my picture

I thought Camden looked like a little man in this outfit so I wanted to take a couple pics. It is getting really hard to take some pictures b/c he is always in a crawling position facing down.

This is the best I can get...

Fun...hotel, couch at home and Easter...

2009-04-13T11:10:00.000-07:00

In Barcelona Camden's favorite thing to do was to crawl around the hotel room, I made peace with the carpet in there, and he also loved to play in the cabinet. This made him so happy. So when he got home he tried out his new skills with the couch. I put him down with a book in the middle of the living room, this usually gives me 30 seconds to go to the bathroom, but I hear a sound like he was hauling butt across the living room. I went running into the living and found him standing up holding onto the couch banging his hands on the cushions. He is now crawling with one leg straight almost like a crab walk. Only time....

Having fun with the couch

We waited till the afternoon to give Camden his very 1st Easter Basket. I put everything everyone sent inside it. He had a great time digging in.

more Spain

2009-04-13T09:13:00.000-07:00

Dad ate Tapas and I ate Cheerios...

family photo

Barcelona

2009-04-13T08:36:00.000-07:00

More pics to come... Here we are in Barcelona. We had a great time and this is btw rain showers. This is one side of a huge cathedral, the Sagrada Familia, The Holy Family. It is still under construction and will be till 2020. No services are held but they charge you to go in so they can pay to finish it.
One museum after another. Here is Mick keeping Camden occupied.
This is in Figueres which is a 2 hour train ride outside of Barcelona. We went to see the famous Dali Museum. Salvador Dali was an artist with strange concepts!

Camden using push toy

2009-04-05T22:46:00.000-07:00

I wanted to post this before we left on our trip but didn't get to. Here he is using his push toy.

All by himself...and then I cried

2009-04-01T06:05:00.000-07:00

We have been working on this for a little while. Only b/c the doctor asked us last week if he was using a sippy cut yet. Since our well baby 9 month is on Thursday of this week I thought we would work on it so we could say yes at our visit. So I stopped holding it for him and he just did it himself. It works best though if he is not sitting up and down. After he started giving himself his bottle I started crying. He is really getting to be a big boy!

...and the very next day

2009-03-31T03:36:00.000-07:00

Well, this morning I wake up and see on my video monitor that Camden is standing up in his crib holding onto the side. This time I can not take credit for placing him this way. I jumped out of bed and went to scoop him up. I guess he is a fast learner.

The problem with Major's toys has just gotten worse. Camden's nanny just sent Major a new toy and that means one more toy Camden goes after. Looks like Major is about to lose some toys for now.

Standing

2009-03-30T07:43:00.001-07:00

I love this face. He is about to cause us some trouble...

He is standing...not quite...I cheated and placed him on his feet. He can hold on once you stand him up. I noticed I didn't have many pics of him in his crib and since he is growing so fast I better get one now. He can pull up to his knees in the crib and on the floor if he is holding on to something height appropriate. But we are still working on getting all the way to our feet. Here are some others of us hanging in his room too.

Hanging out in my room

2009-03-30T07:18:00.000-07:00

Trying to make a break for the kitchen...

Starting point...my face is shiny b/c I have ointment on it for my dribble rash

He loves to play with the Huggies Cars bag of wipes...they are great for traveling b/c there are like 100 in there and you can't refill your plastic holder. I usually have some left over and they are now props for the changing table...they keep him busy while Im changing him since he wants to flip onto his stomach during diaper changes.

Watch out here he comes....

Just had a chance today to take some pics of us hanging out in Camden's room. He goes so fast I have to make sure I get my camera ready. Most of these are of him crawling around his room.

Easter Market in St. Wendel

2009-03-30T01:24:00.000-07:00

Their town square made over the water fountain with flowers and an egg sculpture. Very pretty!

Mick, Camden, Nina, Julia and Thomas standing around while Dagmar and I looked around at all the trinkets.

Mick, Nina, myself, Julia and our little cowboy Camden

Some sort of Easter person on stilts waving at Camden. He was more interested in the dogs. In Germany people bring their dogs everywhere.

This weekend we went with Thomas, Dagmar, Julia and Nina to St. Wendel to visit a Easter Market. It is still kind of cold here so we bundled up and ventured out. There are all sorts of hand made trinkets to buy and snacks to eat. We are hoping to catch some sort of fest when Alice Ann, Grace Ann and Russell are in town.

9 Months

2009-03-24T12:31:00.000-07:00

Well next week we go for our official 9 month well baby appt. However, we made a stop by today b/c Camden's mouth/chin area has broken out in a rash. It turned out to be dribble rash from so much drool. I really didn't think he was drooling all that much but maybe he was.

Anyway, he measured out at 19.4 lbs and a little over 28 inches. Such a big boy! We will have to make the transition to the big car seat very soon.

It also seems like Camden enjoys making all sorts of bathroom type noises. Today he picked up a new one. I had him in the pack n'play across the room so I could actually post some of the pics on the blog today and I started hearing noises like he was having explosive diarrhea. However, I went over there twice and smelled nothing. Finally I caught him making the noise and thought...great...this one will go over well in church. People are going to be expecting one of us to be running out to the bathroom. Even Mick thought it sounded dead on. Hopefully this one will be gone by Sunday. He also has started a noise that sounds like a machine gun. This noise kept my German Physical Therpist laughing our entire pt session.

Some other things that have been going on with the McDaniels:

Also, I thought I would post that Mick and I had an anniversary in March. It was our 7th anniversary. We didn't celebrate it together b/c I was flying back with Camden from the states. I did want to say that Mick surprised me with the dinning room set that I wanted. Some of you already know about this. It was a total surprise and he had it delivered while I was away. It was a very nice surprise to come home to. I have a wonderful husband! I will post some pics soon.

We are looking forward to a good bit of travel over the next couple of months. Mick, Camden and I are heading to Barcelona and Ireland during April and May. Then we have a couple groups of people coming to visit. First after Barcelona, the Pearsons, are coming for a visit. Tim Pearson is Camden's godfather and Mick's mentor. I was close friends with his wife Bonnie while we were stationed with them in Georgia. Then we have Alice Ann, Russ and Grace Ann in May. Plus a possible Tommy and Buck visit in July. Finally we have more friends coming in August. I would say September is open but Im afraid Mick might have a training class in September leading up to his deployment this Fall. If you didn't know already he will be heading out for 6 months. Camden, Major and I will be coming home for the duration of his deployment. Once we all get back to Germany in the Spring we will only have a couple more months till we move back stateside. So, if you want to come and visit we need to get you down on the schedule asap.

That is all for now.

MaMa

2009-03-24T12:07:00.000-07:00

Today Camden looked right at me and said Mama. I got so exicted that he started laughing at me...he normally just thinks the dog is funny so I was excited at both. Mick came home and tried to make him say Dada but he has been saying: baba, dada, and papa. I was just ignoring those and waiting for Mama.

A big help

2009-03-24T09:23:00.000-07:00

Here is Camden helping me unload the clean laundry. Hey...whatever keeps him busy. The pictures are backwards...sorry.

Enjoli

Speed racer

2009-03-24T06:37:00.000-07:00

Camden is just all over the place now. He can really get going. Every 30 seconds Im fetching him and putting him back at his starting point. On the plus side...my floors have never been cleaner.

Camden and Aiden

2009-03-04T07:05:00.000-08:00

My good friend and co-air force spouse, Gina, came to Houston from San Antonio to visit. This was the first time we got to visit with each other and our boys since they were both born. Aiden is 15 months and is the cutest little boy. He really showed Camden what he will be able to do in another 7 months. In this picture Gina asked Aiden to give Camden a hug but it looked like he was going to kiss him instead.

They were really all smiles for the camera. Except Aiden was scared of Rick's super camera.

These are some of my favorites from my mom's house...

Camden on the move

2009-03-03T10:35:00.000-08:00

Look who is moving! He is only good for a couple seconds but he is on his on his way to being totally mobile!!

Camden and I are still in the states. We are in Texas right now at his Grann and Pop's house. We are having a great time and Im enjoying a lot of Bar b q and Mexican food.