Christmas Fun

I can finally say Christmas is over!  I took down every last trace of decorations today.  It seems like so much fun getting prepared for Christmas, but once it's over I think i'm just as happy! This Christmas Arlee had a blast opening gifts.  At first she didn't want anyone to open anything probably because when I was wrapping I told her no when she tried messing with the gifts, opps!  After she realized it was ok she had no problem unwrapping things.  Christmas Eve we stopped at my parents first then went to my grandparents for dinner and more gifts.  We made it home and got Arlee in bed a little after 9pm she was so tired she threw quite a fit before bed, she's really into this fit throwing thing.  She stomped her feet during this fit, I was just like omg, really??  Then Christmas morning we opened our stuff at home then headed to Emporia.  That went pretty good except there were a ton of people and Arlee doesn't know them so it took her a while to open up, she is very shy.  Then Sunday we went to Wayco's parents for more food and gifts.  Arlee got a kitchen from them it is so cute to watch her play like such a big girl. Here are some pics i'm getting bad about taking them since I know everyone else will so I will post more later.

Christmas Eve pic

Here is Arlee's playroom with all her new toys

Here it is after she demolished it!

Baking

We did some Christmas baking over the weekend, here are some pics to show ya how it went.

Just the beginning!



Smile Grandma :)



  

Fudge time.





Arlee and her Grandma mixing up some goodies!

Some half time entertainment



There goes that box!

So we got another one....



And snack time took place in the box



Puppy Chow my fav!









Merry Christmas

Here are our Christmas Cards that we just ordered, hope they get here in time! 

A Real Tree!

This year Wayco dug out our tree from the garage, and when I opened the box it was full of spiders!  I hate spiders more than anything.  So I freaked out and said we weren't bringing that tree inside until I was sure there were no spiders.  Wayco promised to get the tree cleaned up later but he had to go to work.  Later that day my parents came by and I told them about the tree, and my dad decided we should get a real tree.  I love real trees we always had one growing up.  So we headed to the tree farm.  It was a bad day to be outside, the wind was killer and it was COLD!  So this trip was quick.  I managed to get some pics but my camera battery was dying (go figure).

Arlee and Grandpa found a tree!

Heres Arlee running around looking for a tree

To much fun!  She passed out cold!

The Little Lobster

Arlee celebrated her 2nd Halloween yesterday and had a blast being a lobster.  Wayco saw this costume and we had to get it for Arlee.  Once we got it I kept trying to get her used to it since it came with a hat and feet.  She hated the hat and wouldn't keep the darn thing on for more than 5 seconds.  So I just assumed on Halloween she wouldn't wear it but guess what, she wore it all night no complaints.  I have been awfull keeping up with pictures but I managed to get a few while we were out.  We only made it to 4 places and she was passed out, just a little to much.  But hey thats what being a kid is all about.

Here she is with her bag of animal cookies from Great Grandma and Grandpa

Running around

Jayln's B-day Party

Arlee giving Jayln b-day kisses.

15 Month Update

We had our check-up yesterday.  It was the first time that Arlee hasn't had a shot.  There was still needles involved though, she had to have her blood taken to check her levels for anemia and lead and some other stuff I can't remember.  Then they wanted a urine sample, so they had me put this sticky bag thing on her crotch well she never pee'd, I don't blame her.  So we had to take it home and try, well she went but it leaked out, go figure.  So we sat on the potty and after reading about a dozen books finally she went potty!  We got our urine sample.  As far as her growth goes, she was 24.5lbs which is in the 50% range, her height is 33 inches which is 97%, and her head is 19 inches which is 97%.  Tall with a big melon, haha. 

This N That

Arlee is now 14 months old, and I know I have been a bad blogger.  Her and work keep me so busy I just don't have much time to do anything else.  So I will try to put into a few paragraphs what has happened in the past month.  The weather is starting to change, I love fall it is my fav season for sure.  We are taking advantage of the nice weather while its here.  We have visited the park a few times, we had went before she could walk good and it wasn't much fun, but now shes all over the place wanting to do it all.  We checked out Santa Fe Lake, the train, and did some swinging.  The first time we went we couldn't stay long bc I had cold groceries, so when we had to go Arlee started crying! She was having to much fun, so we had to go back later and spend more time playing.  She is really into playing and running around all the time.  Some of her fav things to do are play hide and seek, chase the fake puppy on a leash, swiffer the floors, pretend phone calls, rocking in the chair, running, jumping, and most of all DANCING.  Arlee is a dancing fool! 

Arlee is pretty much able to feed herself most of the time.  She does great with the spoon, she wants to do it herself.  If you try to help her she gets mad, haha.  If its something really runny or if we need her to stay clean we will feed her to avoid making a mess.  We still feed her some baby food and some regular food it just depends on whats going on that day. She is kinda picky, if it looks funny she wont eat it at all.  Her fav food is cottage cheese at the moment, I think she'd eat the whole container if I let her.In the mornings we have a fun routine to start off the day. After I get out of the shower I go get her and she hangs out with me while I get ready. When I brush my teeth she brushes hers, then when I do my hair she waits for me to do hers, and when I put on makeup, she tries to also. Then we dance and head downstairs for breakfast and some Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. It's the little things like that I treasure.

Look at all these toys!! This is now the offical playroom of the house.

Here is Arlee showing Magic how to eat.

This is Arlee laughing while playing hide n seek.

Catching up

It's been awhile since I have posted any Arlee updates.  Ever since Arlee turned 1 it seems like everyday she is learning something new.  My last post was about weaning Arlee off the bottle.  Well that worked pretty good, and it led us up to her going from 2 naps to 1 nap during the day usually between 1:00 and 2:00, and she will sleep for about an hour and a half.  That is really nice because we plan everything we do around her nap schedule.  So back to the bottle issue, I have not taken away her night bottle, only because she isn't drinking enough through the day. My plan is to give her a few months and see what happens. 

Also in Arlee news, she got a potty chair!  She has caught on to the whole potty thing, all of a sudden she decided after watching everyone use the toilet she wanted to give it a shot.  You say "Arlee wanna go potty" and she goes running in the bathroom as eager as can be.  So we decided to get her a potty her size.  So far she has pooped in it everyday and potties in it as well (not every time).  She loves the attention she is getting off this.  We just sit her on it and read a book until shes done.  Now if she could only tell me she has to go, that would be awesome.  Pull-ups here we come!

Alree is walking, running, using her tippy toes, walking backwards, and climbing up the stairs.  I can tell it won't be long til shes looking for a stool to climb on things.  She is talking up a storm mostly just a bunch of random syllables, she can say mom, dad, gma, gpa, duck, cat, bath, backpack, magic, freckles and i'm not sure if i'm forgetting any.  She has started whining and trying to throw fits to see if she gets her way, but i'm not giving in so hopefully that will pass real quick!  She has 12 teeth and a few more on the way, that has been a roller coaster for us.  When those teeth start coming in she gets really cranky fast.

My new favorite thing to do with her now is let her mimic me.  She loves to pretend scrub the floors, vacuum, brush her hair, teeth.  Anything you are doing she wants to try.  Its so cute.  I love the age she is, just watching her learn so quickly is amazing! Ohh one last thing, I can't believe I almost forgot, she can wear pig tails!!  I have never been a fan of pig tails,well now I am they are so cute on babies.  They make her look like a little toddler all grown up!!

We did it!

Arlee made it all day without a bottle, no problem!!  I did give her a night bottle because she didn't drink much at all.  Until she starts drinking more through the day I will give her a night bottle I think!  I am so proud of her!!

Major Milestone (I hope)

First off, Arlee went down for her nap today without a bottle and without any fussing for the first time!  I am so excited because I have been so torn between taking the bottle away and letting her make that decision herself.  Last week I started her on whole milk, just mixing it with her formula, next week she will be all  drinking just milk no formula.  I also started giving her a sippy of just milk with her meals.  I just sit it there and if she drinks it fine if not fine.  Well she spits it out every time. She will go for a drink and immediately realize.  I have been worried that if I take the bottle away she will get no milk at all.  Some people tell me she will drink it if she gets thirsty enough, but part if me thinks that's kinda cruel to force it like that.  Arlee is pretty good about letting us know when shes ready, and if we push to hard she fights back if shes not into it.  She has been showing some signs of not needing a bottle, like if she eats enough food she doesn't seem to mind not having it, and shes going longer between feedings.  So I had made up my mind to bite the bullet and take her bottles away this weekend and see what happens.  And, to get her to take milk in the sippy.  She has never wanted formula from her sippy, she hates it, but she will drink water and juice from it.  Someone told me to try mixing Ovaltine and milk in her sippy and she might like drink it that way until she gets used to it plain.  At least then she would drink enough milk. With all that said this brings us to now, I decided to try a little experiment today.  When Arlee gets up around 9 ish I feed her oatmeal or an egg for breakfast, then at 11ish she gets a bottle and goes down for a nap, then she wakes up for lunch and so on.  Today I fed her breakfast then at 11, instead of getting her bottle I gave her a big snack and gave her milk in a sippy with a straw , she ate and drank a little milk.  Hey a little is better than none and she acted liked she liked it!  Then I laid her down for a nap, and she did it no bottle!!! Yes!!  She is ready!  Lets just see how the day goes!!

Cake Pics

I finally got ahold of some cake pics from Arlees birthday

She's just starting to figure out the cake was pretty good.

It was like she struck gold, she loved the cake!

We had to hose her off she has never been that messy!

12 Month Update

Arlee had her 12 month check-up yesterday.  Everythings good.  Shes 31 1/2 inches long, 22lbs, and 17 inches around her head. Which basically means shes in the 60% for weight, 97% height, and can't remember her head but it was high to.  Arlee had to get 5 shots!!  She was so upset she cried all the way out of the dr.'s this time, then once she settled down she slept for 3hours.  When she woke up she was completely fine, we filled up the pool and went for a swim.  Arlee thinks shes a dog she was panting and trying to drink the water, it was cute.  One thing that was not so cute:  we get outside ready to swim, just get in the pool and she decides it's time to poo!   We were all wet and had to go inside and take off her lil swim diapers, thats hard to do when your wet!  So we made a huge mess, yuck!  Finally we made it back in the pool! Ever since Arlees birthday party she has been a wild animal, she loves to run around outside.  Thats turned into our new thing to do. 

Arlee's Birthday

Saturday was Arlee's birthday party.  We had it at our house and did a bbq, and man was it a HOT day!  It was a great day, alot of work though.  We kept things simple but it still seems like alot when you are cooking and getting your house set up to accommodate so many people.  Arlee had a 2 hr nap before the party so she was in a super good mood.  Then seeing everyone and having an audience she was having a ball!  There was plenty of things for her to do!  Here are some pics I need to get ones from a few people because they got the good ones of her eating cake and stuff.

Sorry my camera kept fogging up from the heat

The cake turned out soo good! 

4th of July

This was Arlee's first 4th of July. Crazy to think that last year I was ready to pop her out!  I knew she wouldn't be to into fireworks but I wanted to introduce her to the whole concept.  So we went and picked out some kiddy fireworks and went to my parents to shoot them off.  Really she wasn't to thrilled, we didn't even pop all that we got since she wasn't diggin them.  She did look cute in her 4th dress though.  That night Arlee stayed with her Grandparents so we could go to a 4th party.  Come to find out Arlee stayed up til around 10 pm watching night works.  Apparently she was enjoying them.  She has never been up that late, I was very surprised she made it that long when she's usually in bed by 8pm every night.  She was very tired the next day and slept for a while longer when she napped. 
Here are some pics to enjoy

This pic is so freakin funny!! This was my moms rocking chair my g-ma just gave it to us!

Walking

Here we are a few weeks shy of being 1 year old, and Arlee is walking! She has been taking a few steps here and there but since Sunday she has started walking more and more.  Crawling is still her fastest way of getting around.  She is learning everything so fast at this age.  Saying Mama, Dada, M-ma (Grandma), Baba, Papa (Grandpa), and maybe a few other words that we can't understand just yet.  She can brush her hair.  The list goes on.  Arlee is a very happy baby most of the time, unless she doesn't get her way or is teething.  There is one thing we are having problems with.  Her napping!!  When we are home with her she takes naps upstairs no problem in her crib, 2 naps for an hour or so.  But when we are gone and my grandma is here with her she can't truck up the stairs with Arlee so we have a pack-n-play downstairs in the play room for her to nap in.  Well guess what she won't sleep in it at all.  Not really sure why.  My G-ma rocks her to sleep then Arlee sleeps on her for about 30 mins or so.  So I am trying to figure out what the deal is here.  I thought maybe it was because it was so light in her downstairs room compared to her room upstairs which is really dark.  Yesterday we made curtains to hang up to darken the room, hopefully that will solve the problem.  If not we may have to buy another crib to put downstairs.  I just want her to get a good nap and for my g-ma to get a break.  No Nap = Fussy Baby!!  Any suggestions???

Weekend Fun

This weekend was a busy one for Arlee Bear.  We had the Westhoff family reunion and our first swim.  The reunion was at the Parsons park, they have a really nice park.  Arlee pretty much stayed in her stroller because she isn't walking yet so that puts a damper on things.  Very soon she should be walking she can take a few steps but no walking just yet.  We didn't stay to long because it was so hot and we had plans to go swimming!! Aunt Lori got Arlee this thing to swim with and it was a hit.  Arlee loved the water!! We need a pool asap!  And mom needs a swim suit that fits.  I tried to wear my pre-baby swimsuit, haha ya right so I had to wear a tank to keep everything in place.  Here are some pics.

Giving me kisses!

The turtle race, all the kids bring turtles and have a race Arlee's turtle came in last it didn't even move!

At the park, they had some pretty flowers, Arlee loves flowers.