Just Us.

Yesterday morning we were feeling great, the sun was shining and all I wanted to do was get out of the house after being cooped up for so long being sick. 

So I got Viv ready and she and I headed out on a little mommy-daughter date!

I usually don't take her with me when I go out because 1. she likes staying home with Daddy way more 2. I usually run my errands in the evening after Josh gets home and Viv starts to get crabby in the evening if we're not doing "fun" things. 

We also like to go out all together A LOT.

 Actually, most times I have to do anything Josh wants to come too and we all go together - which I love.

So all of these things combined don't really leave much opportunity to take Viv with me alone to do the simple errand running tasks. 

I decided that it would be fun though to just do normal things with her and make her feel included. 

First we went to Target and I let her pick out a new book and some special new clothes for our vacation to Florida! She LOVES picking out clothes for herself. 

We walk around the department and when she see's something she likes she gets so excited and wants to try and put it on.

She knows what she likes and doesn't like already and it's way too adorable to see her fashion sense grow. 

After we went to Target we stopped at Panera Bread for lunch which was probably the most fun I've ever had with Viv. 

She was really like a small child and not like a baby and we just hung out and laughed and ate our food.

She got her very own macaroni and cheese and tiny iced water and she sat in an adult seat and ate all by herself (she even used a fork!). 

After she was finished eating though she wanted to run around and meet everyone who was there - and of course, she was the main attraction.

After lunch we went to Best Buy really quick to pick up my camera and then we walked down to the post office to grab some stamps. 

The whole time we were out I know that she felt like such a big girl.

She held my hand and walked next to me at times, gave me hugs whenever she got really happy, and talked to all of the kids that she saw. 

I believe it's definitely important to do special one-on-one things with your kids.

I know that I spend every day with her at home and we play together all day but to make an effort to do new, independent things outside of the house is important. 

Right now it's just her and I most of the time and soon we're going to be adding a new baby into the family and that's going to mess with the balance of our household in such a new way.

I think it's one of the most important things for us as parents to make sure that Viv still gets that special one-on-one time with both parents both before and after the baby comes. 

I came from a family with 3 younger brothers and I know how easy it is to get lost in the midst of the chaos of young children and how easy it is to start to feel left out or forgotten a little bit. 

Viv is my special girl.

She is a treasure and her soul is tender.

She lives for the positive-reinforcement and physical love that we give her. 

Since she was born we have showered her with hugs, kisses and praises and that's what she knows and that's how she functions.

She is happiest when we're adoring her.

I know some people who are so opposite of that.

People who don't kiss their children or tell them things like they're beautiful, but love them in other ways (which is fine, I'm not one who really cares about how other people parent their kids).

We're all about the encouraging words and physical presence in our children's lives.

It's so important for us that our children know the deep love that we have for them and our way of showing them is through hugs and words and emotional love.

I can't wait to add another sweet little girl into our lives to love on but until then we're just enjoying this precious time that we have with our first little girl before she's no longer our only baby.

These next few months are going to be so special for us.

Viv is going to grow and learn so much when Penny is born and for right now I'm perfectly happy just keeping Viv as tiny as possible.

Time is such a vapor and every moment that goes by is one more moment that Viv will no longer be a baby.

Though I think I will always see her as my baby.

Soon she's going to be a big sister, the eldest child.

Today we're spending this sunny afternoon dancing and singing songs.

It's a good day.