Penny: 3 Months!

Now, don't get me wrong...I love the whole squishy newborn phase but once my kids hit 3 months old, it seems like things get a whole heck of a lot more fun!

3 months still seems so fresh and so new, and it is, but my kids like to grow up really fast and start doing things that they shouldn't. 

I wouldn't mind it if they stayed helpless and tiny maybe just a little bit longer...like maybe until 5 months?

But no, they think that they have to be independent and crazy when they hit that 3 month mark.

With Viv I was always shocked at how fast she completed milestones and how young, but with Penny I have come to just know that it's going to happen soon because she is so much like Viv in that aspect.

So, without further ado...here's Penny's 3 month list of accomplishments, likes and dislikes:

Accomplishments:

- Rolling over  

She is rolling over ALL the time. As soon as you set her down, she rolls. She rolls off her blankets and across rooms. She's super tiny so it's really quite weird to see - Josh still can't get over it. 

- Scoot-crawling

Now, believe me or not on this one, but this kid...this tiny, tiny human...she gets around. She rolls over onto her belly, puts that adorable little butt of hers up in the air and scoots forward! It's mind-blowing. Viv wasn't crawling until 4.5 months and even though this isn't really "crawling", it's dang close and I'm scared about having another mobile kid so soon!

- Reaching and playing with toys

She's been enjoying holding little toys for awhile now but just recently she started to reach her little arms out and grab them! When she's in her crib we always watch her roll to her belly and grab a couple toys. They keep her majorly occupied and I'm grateful for that. 

- Tasted her first solid food

Viv started on daily solids at 3 months - she was so ready. This little princess on the other hand, isn't really going to start yet. One exception though was the other day while Viv was eating a banana I told her that she could share a tiny bite with Penny is she wanted. Viv was beaming - so excited to show her sissy one of her favorite snacks! Penny just had a couple little tastes and didn't really know what to do with it but really loved the taste. I'm hoping to exclusively breast-feed until 5 or 6 months depending on how she's doing. 

- Started riding in the stroller without her carseat

This is probably my most favorite thing. Our friend gave us a gorgeous double stroller and Penn is finally big enough to ride in it! It was such a hassle to always have to have the right carseat with the right stroller...now it's simple and awesome. 

Likes:

- being snuggled super close

- laying on the floor/tummy time (freedom!)

- her sister (loves actually)

- napping in her crib (yay!)

- nursing constantly 

- baths (she laughs hysterically every time)

- going for walks in the stroller

- doesn't mind riding in the car (unless she's hungry, then you best watch out)

- being in her sling ( we use the Sakura Bloom ring sling)

- standing ( we just started using the Johnny Jump Up and Exersaucer) 

Dislikes:

- sleeping less than 12 hours a night (don't hate me)

- being constipated 

- shots

- not being held during (our) dinnertime

- being alone in a dark room ( I don't blame her)

- not sleeping next to Mommy at night

I really don't think we have any complaints about this sweet girl.

I couldn't imagine a better little person for our family than her - she's an angel.

She is a total Mama's girl which I love so much.

So blessed with such a sweet and snuggly girl. 

Life is good. 

6 Weeks.

I just can't help but take hundreds of pictures of this baby!

I mean, how can I not when she's ALWAYS smiling and cooing and laughing?!

I can't believe that she is going to be 6 weeks old tomorrow already.

It's a little heartbreaking how much faster time seems to go when you have a second baby.

I feel like she was literally just born and here she is a month and a half old.

She had her 1 month checkup last week and she has gained 2.5 pounds already!

I don't think it helps any that it's summer too...

time always goes so much faster in the summer.

I can't even talk about how much I love this girl and how thankful we are for her soul in our life. 

She fits into our little family so perfectly.

Her personality and presence is so calming and peaceful.

I think we'll keep her! 

Ha!

Weaned!

Okay, we've made it to a huge milestone with Vivienne!

We're are weaned from breastfeeding!!

She will be 16 months old on Monday and I am so proud to have made it to this point with breastfeeding.

There were so many times early on when I didn't think that we would even make it a couple months let alone almost a year and a half.

We didn't really plan to wean her, it just sort of happened.

Over the past month or so nursing was getting so painful for me because of the new baby coming that I would literally have to pray every time we would nurse and just ask the Lord to calm me down. 

I was getting frustrated and angry because of all the pain and I knew that if I didn't pray for peace that I was going to snap at Viv soon and I never wanted nursing to be anything but a comfort for her.

About 4 nights ago I just decided that I couldn't nurse her to sleep one more night and I just told her no.

I was so torn because we have such a close bond through breastfeeding and I was so scared to lose that but I knew that if Viv didn't stop soon that it was going to effect Penny.

I knew that if I didn't get some sort of break, or even if I had to nurse both of them that I would give up too early with Penny and I so deeply want her to have an extended nursing experience as well. 

So, the first night was rough.

It was one of the most emotional and traumatic times so far as a parent. 

It was bad because of how she was reacting to not being allowed to nurse but also because I was so emotionally invested in this journey we had been on together.

So many times that night I questioned if I was doing things the right way or if I was a terrible mother.

We never let her cry it out before and here I was just starting out of the blue.

Deep down I felt a peace though and so I continued to let her cry.

I snuggled her and rocked her in my arms to let her know that my love was still there.

I sang her lullabies and told her stories.

I stroked her hair and her cheeks and held her so tight while she cried.

After about 25 minutes she had settled down and was starting to fall asleep.

After 35 minutes she was peacefully sleeping just like if I had nursed her to sleep.

The next night was a little bit easier.

I held her close and hushed her to sleep within about 15 minutes... and her crying was not nearly as bad as the first night. 

Last night after her bath was had, her teeth were brushed, and stories were told she jumped into my arms and kissed my face and fell asleep in my arms within minutes.

It was the most beautiful experience so far for me as her mother.

There was so much peace and so much comfort.

I am so thankful for the 16 special months that I nursed my firstborn to sleep every single night.

There is a bond from that time that could never be broken.

I am also thankful that this journey has come to an end.

It was time and both of us knew it.

It was time for her to be the big girl and sleep on her own before her little sister comes and it was time for me to realize that she is no longer my littlest baby (even though she will always and forever be my baby). 

There is something just so deeply special about my sweet Vivienne and watching her grow and mature so much over the past few nights has made me so proud and so grateful. 

This morning to celebrate her 3rd night of being a big girl and going to sleep without nursing I whipped up a batch of pink heart-shaped pancakes (thanks Melissa for the idea of celebration pancakes!!) and made her some pink strawberry milk and had ready for her when she woke up! 

She was so excited...mostly though because I let her have extra maple syrup with her pancakes...hehe.

I put Taylor Swift (she's obsessed) on and we danced all morning while we had breakfast. 

After she ate she took a bath with extra bubbles and special bath paints and just had the best time!

It was raining and dreary all morning and afternoon and I just decided that all the housework could wait and that Viv deserved all my attention for the rest of the day instead of just making the morning special...

We made a cozy blanket fort in her room and played with all her dolls and read so many stories, we painted special pictures for Penny for when she comes home, and we ate lots of popcorn!

Later in the afternoon I had a doctor's appointment but after that we stopped at the local pet store and saw baby bunnies and other furry critters.

Finally, after Josh got home from work we all piled into the car and ventured out in the rain and spent some time at the library since it was too wet to go to the playground like usual. 

We're trying to spoil her as much as possible and make her feel so special before the new baby comes and takes some of our attention away.

I just love spending my days at home with my girl doing fun things and making memories! 

Something Simple.

Vivienne wore holes in her shoes this week.

When I saw her toe peeking out the other day my heart sank a little.

It's these little things that can rip your heart out and make you realize how precious life is.

My first born daughter is already old enough to be adventuring so hard that she's putting holes in the soles of her shoes!

She runs with wild abandon - no fear, no worry, just pure happiness.

Her soul lives for the grass

 and the trees

 and the dirt of the earth.

My soul lives for watching her.

Watching her run 

and laugh

and discover. 

It's a beautiful thing to watch your child be born into this world and so quickly become part of it.

To watch them grow and see glimpses of who they're going to be.

Viv is so unique and has a personality all her own and I love that more than anything.

I pray that she will always strive to see the good in this world that's so filled with evil and hate and that she will always show her fierce love and passion in the midst of the mess.

These are just the first of many shoes that will see beauty and adventure through my little girl.

I know it's a simple thing, wearing out your shoes...but I really feel that it's a grand accomplishment. 

I'm thankful for this time of year and the opportunities we have to get outside and see the world...even if it's only a small part of it.

I'm thankful for a daughter who is so passionate and so full of life.

xoxo. 

A New Milestone!

Sooo....this is happening!

I know that just a few posts ago I talked about how Viv (and Joshua and I) weren't ready to stop co-sleeping and that we were just going to wait awhile longer until we started the transition to her sleeping by herself...but guess what guys, I think she's ready!

First off...I didn't really think that a toddler bed was a practical option because she is only 14 months old.

I pretty much just dismissed that option and thought that if we were going to wean her of co-sleeping that she would have to go in a crib. 

Well, last week when my brother and sister-in-law stayed with us, they stayed in Viv's room and when they set up their bed Viv was obsessed!

She thought it was the coolest thing that there was a bed in her room!

That's when it hit me that "Oh my gosh, I think she's ready for a toddler bed!"

So this morning I dug out the folder of "kid thing instructions" and had Josh turn the crib into a toddler bed!

I originally was just going to buy a new toddler bed and leave the crib as it was for when Penelope was old enough to use it but I figured that we already have so much to buy for the baby that we'll just worry about a new crib when the time comes that Penny outgrows her bassinet. 

Plus we don't really have any space at all to have a crib AND toddler bed set up at the same time.

So this afternoon we went to Target and let Viv pick out some brand new "big girl" bedding and an adorable night light (I wanted to save her beautiful crib bedding set for Penny since it barely got any use and I just love it so much). 

We also got a guard rail to attach when I'm not laying in bed with her!

As soon as we got the bed all set up and cozy, Viv ran to it and snugged right under the covers and pretended to go to sleep!

She is so adorable and will get her babies and her books and put them in her bed and sit there and read - my heart seriously melts to see my baby grow up so!

I think that by transitioning her and treating her as a big girl rather than a baby is going to make this change a lot easier for us all. 

Viv is such an independent girl and if she thinks that something is her idea then it makes things a lot easier.

So, tonight is going to be our first night trying out her sleeping alone!

Her room is right next to ours and I've moved everything around so that there aren't any hazards that she could find in the night should she wake up and we don't hear her. 

Josh is giving her a bath right now and after that is her teeth brushing, story time and then sleepy time! 

I'll be doing updates to document how she's doing with this new big milestone and I hope that everything goes smoothly!

I'll be happy if I even just get a few hours of sleep without her in our bed kicking my belly! 

^^^pretending to be sleeping!^^^

I hope you all enjoyed this beautiful weekend! 

xoxo.

Making the Bed

Viv is the greatest helper.

She is always trying to help me sweep and mop the floors, cook dinner, and throw garbage away. 

Her favorite thing to help me do every morning though is to make the bed.

It takes such a long time but we have so much fun and it's the best way to wake up.

We jump on the bed, fall in the piles of pillows and hide under the sheets.

Viv is such a joy to be around at every single moment and I just love her life.

The beauty that children bring to life is magical. 

Viv's First Birthday: Little Details

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With only about 8 hours to plan and create a small birthday party I will say that I'm pretty happy with how things turned out.

We wanted to keep a Valentines Day theme since that's what we were planning on doing a few weeks from now.

I spent less than $30 on decorations and not much more than that on food!

During the two parties we only had about 14 people over so it really was very small.

I always make it my goal to keep everything I do on a small budget and create as much as I can with my hands.

Not only because our bank account calls for some budgeting but because it's a hobby of  mine.

Whether it be clothing, home-decor, parties or whatever else it's always fun for me to go the extra mile to find things on the thrifty-side and create as much as I can on my own. 

Don't mind all of my crooked pictures frames. 

Viv's new favorite thing is to play with them so they're usually all over the floor.

That frame wall has got to go!

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crepe paper garland: 3 rolls of crepe paper at $.50 per roll

Tassel garland: plastic tablecloths $1 each and I used 3 tablecloths so that's $3 (each tablecloth made 4 garlands)

  Tissue paper flowers: already had the tissue paper

Balloons: $1 for a package of 12 - I bought 3 packages 

Heart shaped drink stirrers for decoration: $1 per package of 9 - I used 2 packages 

Treat bags for favors: $1 for 25

paper straws: Target: $1.97 for a package of 24

Plates, napkins and treat dishes: Target: $1 per package 

Large paper heart doilys (I used them with yarn to make garlands around the house): $1 for a package of 16

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Everything else I already had on hand and raced around finding things that matched the decor.

I cut out a bunch of hearts using different colors of construction paper and used for tags on the mason jars, on the favor bags, and for people to write notes to Viv on.

I kept everything extremely simple since I didn't have much time at all and I also had to cook and bake!

Her cake was really simple too - I just used 2 boxed cakes and a simple buttercream frosting and made some decorations for the tops using paper and some wooden skewers.

So it's not hard or stressful to plan a party if you keep things simple and easy! 

Viv's First Birthday: Party #2

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Sunday morning (Viv's actual birthday) I got up at 6am to make some special treats for the party with Josh's family. Viv woke up at 7:30 and I made a special breakfast for us all and we made her feel like a princess.

We went to church at 10 and by that time we were all pretty tired already.

After church we had Josh's family over for snacks and treats and some fun with the birthday girl!

That night we went to a Super Bowl party with our church and Viv played with all of her friends and had special birthday cupcakes!

By the time we got home we were all exhausted and went to bed right away and Viv and I got to sleep in the next morning. 

We had such a fun weekend celebrating our first little girl's first birthday!!