11 Months Old

Happy 11 months to my busy little bee!

I cannot believe you are officially one month away from turning a year old!! Time has definitely flown by.

You are into EVERYTHING!  You love playing in drawers, the refrigerator, Brody's water/food bowl and in the closet.

You still like to watch "The Goodnight Show."

And playing with Brody.

 

 You also love taking blocks and whatnot out of a storage container and placing it in back inside.

You've taken a few unaided steps by yourself, but you rather crawl.  You are one fast little booger!  You also love when I crawl with you.  You think it's hilarious!  Side note, you stand great unaided by yourself!

You're still drinking breastmilk, 4 bottles a day.  You'll drink a little water out of a straw.  Yes, you can drink from a straw; however, you hate drinking breastmilk out of it.  You spit it right out.  

You are eating 3 solid meals a day, but lately you've had zero interest in your lunch and dinner.  You take a couple of bites then spit it out or feed it to Brody. You will eat your breakfast without any trouble.  You LOVE fruit, especially strawberries! You also love fruit smoothies with spinach.

Your nap in the afternoon has become non-existent.  You will nap around 8am for a couple of hours, but when the afternoon rolls around, you want nothing to do with a nap.  We are trying to push your morning nap later, we've made it 11 am so far, since all you want to do is play in the afternoon.  However, you've become incredibly fussy by the end of the day because you are exhausted. I'm praying this will change. 

You know the word "No," but continue doing what you want to do.  When say, "no ma'am" you will stop, look at us and then go back to what you were doing.  When we say, "Where's Bro Bro" you will look for him.  You will randomly say "Mama" and "Bro Bro" yet no "Dada."  You mainly babble or squeal.  No real distinct words.  

You love to clap and wave.  You can also hold the phone up to your ear like your talking. So cute!

You are a little ham Miss Vivian.  I am so incredibly blessed to have you as my daughter.  Although you are exhausting, you are totally worth every second of everyday.  I wouldn't change it for the world!

I love you bunches little tater tot!!!

 

 

  

F.A.V.O.R.I.T.E.S.

I am definitely a t-shirt and shorts/jeans type of girl.  Always have been.  Maybe because I rather be comfortable than stylish.  

As a Mom, I have come to realize I need to wear more "adult" attire rather than dressing for class in college.  You know, gym shorts/yoga pants and school logo t-shirts.  Better yet, stop shopping at American Eagle.  

No, I'm not wanting to dress in dresses/skirts or blouses all the time, but I want to continue being in comfortable clothes that are "Mom" appropriate.

I randomly went into Ann Taylor Loft the other day and man, they are killing it.  Their color scheme are very pretty this year.  Lots of whites and pastels.  

I had Vivian with me and shopping with an almost toddler is challenging.  I started grabbing  a few items, found a large dressing room that fits a stroller and started trying on clothes quickly.  

I loved everything I tried on!  I usually have trouble finding shorts that fit right and theirs fit perfectly.  Their tees were super comfortable.  So incredibly soft.  

I bought a pair of shorts and a few linen tees that day.  Fast forward a few days later I went back and bought another pair of shorts and a few cotton tees. Both times I went in, they were having a sale.  The first time everything was half off.  The second time their tees were buy 3 for $35 (I bought 6).  Then I ordered another pair of shorts a few more tees and they were all 40% off. 

Can't beat that!  Much better price and quality that AE or Old Navy.  

  1.Sunwashed Tee  2. Scoop Neck Tee

3. Scoop Neck Linen Tee 4.Riviera Shorts

 As for little miss, I'm always buying clothes for her.  That is something I can't control.  Little girls clothes are just too cute!  I love shopping at Baby Gap.  1. They are always having a sale and 2. Their little girls clothes are stylish.  Yes, Vivian is way more stylish than her Mommy!

I also love shopping at Peek Kids and Etsy shops.  Peek Kids are a little hipster and Etsy are a little more original.  

 1. Denim Dot Shorts 2. Road Trip Tank 3. Pug Tee 4. Pastel Feather Turban

5. Play Tank 6. Denim Cutoffs

There you have it, a few things we are currently wearing. 

First Concert

A couple of months ago Brian asked if I wanted to see Fitz and the Tantrums at Greenfield Amphitheatre for May 14th.  I was down at the time since I'm always home by 6:30pm.  Every. Single. Night.

When the day arrived, I was praying Vivian would nap that afternoon.  I let her sleep for an hour that morning in hopes she would definitely have her afternoon one.  If she naps too long in the morning, she tends to skip her afternoon nap.  I woke her at 9am to make our way to storytime at the library.

We came home and played afterwards.  By 11:00am she was fussy and rubbing her eyes.  I was hoping she wouldn't fall asleep until around 1:30pm, that didn't happen.  She ended falling asleep at 11:30 and woke at 1pm.  Super!

After B arrived home at 5:30, I was debating on whether or not I should go.  You could tell she was tired.  I decided it was just one night, I might as well.  I got her dressed in her pj's instead of doing it when we got back home.

While driving to Greenfield Lake, she was fussing.  I felt like a terrible Mom for taking her out when I knew she needed to be asleep.  I kept telling B we should have stayed home and he could have gone to the concert by himself.

After getting there, she was bright eyed and bushy tail.  She was wiggling a lot because she wanted down and explore.  Of course, that wasn't going to happen.

The opening band came on around 6:30pm.  She watched a little then you could tell she was getting tired.

That's when I started to get really nervous.  I was thinking there was no way she was going to fall asleep with the loud music.  Somehow she did.  I tried to lay her down in her carseat, but she wasn't having that.  I just held her for over an hour, standing up.  I tried to keep one hand over her ear to block out some of the sound.  

I wish I could have enjoyed myself more.  There was another family there with a daughter that looked around Vivy's age and they were having a great time dancing around, all the while, I'm holding my child tightly in hopes she wouldn't wake.

Vivian did wake up around 8:15pm looking a little confused.  I decided to take her to the car and B followed behind shortly.  She stayed awake all the way home.  B was sweet enough to put her down.  She cried a little bit before falling asleep.  

I'm glad it turned out a little better than I thought it would. I know this won't last forever.  Right now I'm all about her bedtime routine.  I think that's what has helped us with sleeping through the night at a young age. I just knew B wanted us to do something as a family that was in the evening.  I'm glad we went, but I may not be doing that again unless we have a sitter.

     

Mother's Day

What a wonderful 1st Mother's Day that I had.  We left home a little after 8 am making our way to B's parents.  I wanted to leave around Vivy's naptime in hope she would sleep a little.  I knew she wouldn't have her afternoon nap...not that she always takes one.  It wasn't long before we were on the road before she was out.

Brody got himself comfy for his 2 hour car ride.

We arrived around 10:30 am. The 'Grands' were very happy to see her!  She was happy to see them.  We hung around the house for a little while before heading over to B's sister's house to see Vivy's first cousins.  ML loves her Vivian!

Vivian did surprisingly well all day.  I figured she would be a little fussy since she wasn't at home.  She did get lots of attention, naturally.  

 

B's Mom made BBQ, potato salad, baked beans and green beans.  Vivy loved the green beans! We had a strawberry shortcake cake and a strawberry ice cream cake for dessert.  They both were delicious!  His Mom is a wonderful cook :) 

Vivian went down easily at bedtime.  Thank goodness!  She slept until 5:20 am and then went back to sleep a little after 6:30 am.  She slept until 8:10 am in the bed with Mommy and Daddy. I loved being cuddled next to her.  It was the perfect Mother's Day morning.

We had Belgium waffles for breakfast.  Vivian played and we took a couple of pictures.

Making her smile :)

 

We headed back to home around 1 pm so Vivian would sleep.  She was getting restless.

Thank goodness she slept the entire way home.  She was happy to be home.

I opened my cards and gift.  Brody was kind enough to give me a card also.  He wanted to show that he still loves me even though the poor little guy doesn't get all my attention.

Vivian and Daddy each gave me a card and Vivy...aka, Daddy...got me a gift certificate for a massage, facial, mani and pedi.  Can't wait to relax!!!

I had an absolute perfect first Mother's Day.  I am so incredibly thankful that God chose me to be Vivian's Mother.  She is the greatest gift of all!!!

Life Lately

We've been busy here at the Kinard homestead.  Last night Vivian decided to wake up at 10 pm, crying hysterically, and did not go back to sleep until almost midnight.  I changed her, fed her, rocked her to sleep multiple times, but as soon as I put her in her crib, she would cry.  I finally had to let her cry it out!  She cried for about 10 minutes before falling asleep.  Luckily she slept until 7 am!  

During the day,  Vivian has been on the go, go, go!  I can barely keep up with this child.  Thankfully she doesn't know how to walk yet.  She does; however, love walking with her V-Tech walker.  I just wish we had more room for her. Mommy lets her burn energy in other ways!

We made it to the beach for the first time this year.  She was not a fan!  Cried when she touched the sand and water.  Hopefully she we will come to love the beach!

I got a new vehicle.  I said goodbye to my Infiniti G37 and said hello to an Acura MDX.  Mama needed a bigger ride!

We've been playing outside a lot.

Shopping.

Went to her first baseball game.

Eating.

Bathtub fun.

And lots of snuggles!