We Have a New Friend

This is our new little friend that will be staying with us a few days each week. Today was his first day and he was absolutely perfect! I mean really! He slept the first 2 1/2 hours he was hear and Brantley didn't even notice him. haha Once he was up she wanted to check him out. She was very sweet. She walked all around the bouncy seat, checking him out from every angle. hehe!

My mom came over at lunch time and took Brantley to the park for an hour or so which was really great. She played really hard and was totally ready for her nap when they got back home. Thank you, Nana for taking BR to the park today. She loved it!

I'm hoping we make it to the Zoo tomorrow and if you do make it over there you know I'll take pictures and be back to share them with you all. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

More Valentines' Day

So I forgot that we took these pictures at dinner the other night, so when I downloaded the pictures to my computer this afternoon I was pleasantly surprised.

Oh and below are the sweet little Valentines we made for Brantley's grandparents and of course we saved one for ourselves.

Okay thanks for entertaining my delayed photos. haha

Happy Belated Valentine's Day!!

Valentine's

Chase and I celebrated Valentine's Day last Saturday night by going to dinner at Surin 280 and Yogurt Lab in Vestavia. It was all amazing! We hadn't eatin sushi in months and I was really craving it. The yogurt is always a plus! Yum!

Monday, Brantley and I went to a playdate with some of our little friends and their mommy's. It was so much fun!

After all this fun with our friends we headed home for a nap and I did some cleaning. For dinner, we went to eat Mexican so I didn't have to cook. It was a great treat. Not very romantic but we still enjoyed our time together celebrating our love for each other and our little family.

I hope everyone else had a wonderful LOVE day!

New Puzzles

On Monday, Brantley and I went to Toys R' Us to look for some new, big girl toys. BR was given a gift card to there by her great-grandparents so we had money to spend. haha I was looked for a cute stuffed baby doll named, Stella, but of course they didn't have her in the store and they're all sold out online. So instead we got a big fluffy stuffed dog (that's his feet on the right side of the picture) and these two cute puzzles. As for now, Brantley doesn't understand putting the puzzle together. Ha All she wants to do is take the pieces out, chew on them or lick them. Silly girl! I can not wait for her to move out of the oral stage. Hopefully it's soon!

The one that looks like a house teaches shapes and colors. The one that looks like a fish bowl teaches colors and the animals. I know she is still young but hopefully she'll catch on soon and be putting these together a lot.

Here is a little video of the first time she played with the puzzles. So cute!

BR at 12 Months...ONE year old!!!

 This past week has been so crazy with birthday celebrations and such, that I'm just now getting around to writing this post.

We went to BR's 12 month check up on Tuesday afternoon so now I have her stats.

Weight: 17 lb 13 oz

Height: 29 1/2 inches

Head: 18 1/4 inches

Teeth: still only 2 on the bottom

Diapers: Size 3

Clothes: Mostly 12 months but some 9 month things still fit - Shoes: size 3.5

Words: "dada" and "a da" aka All Done

She says "dada" and "a da" all the time. I think I've heard her slip up and say "mama" a few times the past couple of days but she doesn't say it on command. I know she will eventually.

Favorite Foods: Mandarin Oranges, Strawberries, Broccoli, Green Beans, Edemame, Cheese, Chicken, Eggs, Waffles, Buddy Fruits (if you haven't tried these with your little one, I recommend them. They're great!) She also still likes puffs, crackers. She wants to try anything we are eating. We usually let her and sometimes we don't.

Sleeping Habits: Brantley is still taking 2 naps a day. We are working towards switching to 1 long nap a day but Brantley isn't ready. Also, she still wakes up at least one time every night. I'm so tired of this. Dr. S said that it's more habit so I just need to give her water instead of feeding her a bottle and let her cry it out. I haven't taken that step yet. It may take a few nights but I will eventually stop giving her a full bottle and hopefully she will stop feeling so hungry at 4 am.

Oh and the other good news is that she has started drinking Whole Milk. I'm pumped that we don't have to continue buying formula anymore. That stuff is expensive!

 Brantley Rae at 12 months:
- Is the cutest little girl and so much fun to be around.
- Is starting to show an interest in Baby Dolls which makes me really happy. I LOVED baby dolls when I was a little girl. I was a little mommy and I would love for Brantley to have that motherly instinct as well.
- She loves playing with and holding onto helium balloons. We still have two from her birthday party and she holds the string and walks them around with her all day. It's pretty cute!
- Is trying to start running, but not quite there yet.
- Knows how to drink from a sippy cup with a straw. When we are out to dinner/lunch, she wants to drink our drinks if we have a top and straw. She thinks she's so big.
- I hate to admit it but she throws some seriously fits when she's tired and has something she wants taken away from her.I'm not going to lie. I usually think it's pretty funny but I try not to let her see me laughing. haha!
- Not a big fan of sweets. Like father, like daughter.

I know there is so much more that I should add to this post but I'll have to come back and update as I think of things. My brain is running a little slow this morning.

This picture is from Brantley's birthday party (01/29/11) She had a great time and was so cute!

Brantley Rae, 

Mommy and Daddy love you very very much. We can't believe you're already a year old but we love watching you learn and grow. You are such and blessing and we are so thankful to have you in our lives. 

We love you, BR!!

-Mommy and Daddy

Smash Cake Video

Brantley didn't really get into smashing her cake but she still tried.

Brantley Rae's 1st Birthday Bash

Chase and I with our sweet ONE year old! It's still hard to believe that she's one. Before I know it she'll be graduating high school. Yikes!! haha

 This was the first decoration that I made and I LOVE the way it turned out!

First up are the decorations. I had been working on these decorations and planning it all out since the beginning of December. I lost so much sleep over planning, it was ridiculous. But thankfully in the end it all came together and looked great.

The food and the cakes were SO good. The same lady that made our wedding cake made BR's birthday cakes. So special. Thanks so much, Pam! You did a wonderful job!!

I also LOVE how cute Brantley's outfit turned out. The pants are so adorable! I'm going to applique a "B" on another shirt so she can wear the pants again. I love them!  
Shameless plug: I would love to make your little one a birthday outfit. E-mail me if your interested!

Party Time

Brantley just walked all around the room holding onto a balloon or two and she also pushed Dina around the room a little. She was having a blast! It was time for friends and family to join the party.

My girlfriends from high school/college were there with their kiddos and some husbands. It meant the world to me to have them all there to celebrate with us. I love this picture of BR and Bebe. They haven't had a good one together in a while so I'm glad we got this one. It will be framed!

Lots of Brantley's little friends were there as well. It was so special to have everyone there. Thanks to everyone that was able to come.

These are just some of the great gifts that were given to Brantley. She got lots of really cute outfits, toys, shoes, that adorable hand painted Tea Set from Miss Jami, and a really adorable cupcake backpack from Miss Ashley and her kiddos. I think my favorite outfit is the Minnie Mouse outfit. I so wish we were going to Disney World this summer but that just isn't going to happen...unless someone else want to foot the bill. haha

Really she was given so many great gifts that I can't thank everyone enough. It just shows how much Brantley Rae is loved!

Brantley didn't really care much for smashing the cake. She didn't like the icing on her fingers so she didn't eat much of it. Which honestly probably wasn't a bad thing. She still ended up stay up until 9:30 that night. I was falling asleep on the couch and she was walking around the living room just playing away. It was nuts!

So that was the party. Two months of planning for 2 hours of birthday party fun. Kinda like a wedding. ha! We had a fabulous time celebrating our baby's  FIRST birthday and we're so glad so many of our friends and family were able to be there with us. It was a wonderful day! 

I know BR won't remember but we have the pictures to prove the fun and how much she is loved.

Thanks, everyone!