9 and a half months...

Makayla had her 9 month check up today. I will share with you her stats..
Weight 23.8 pounds. Last month 20.8 pounds, birth 8 pounds 10 oz
Length 29.5 inches. Last month 28 inches, birth 20 inches
Head circumference 18 inches, last month 17 1/4 birth 14.
She is still off of the charts on everything. She had her first flu shot today, she gets the second part in a month. I also found out today that the pediatrician's office pierces ears, so on Nov 17th, my daughter is getting her ears pierced! Just in time for Thanksgiving. We also learned that when she is 11.5  months old we lose the formula and start whole milk, but no more than 24 ounces/day. My husband will be happy to hear that, he LOVES whole milk.
I cannot believe that we scheduled her 1 year check up! Where did the time go? My little angel is almost no longer a baby :( Now, off to plan her birthday party. Happy Hump day!

9 months and 5 days later...

As you know, I always takea picture of my sweet on on her month birthday. Hopefully, one day, she will look back and see why I love her so much. Anyway, here is the picture from that day.

Makayla,
I can't believe you are 9 months old already! I have had so much fun with you! We took your first family vacation to LBI (last year you were in Mommy's belly) and I know you had a great time! You went on a Whale watch with the family and while we didn't see any whales, we saw A LOT of dolphins!  You loved spending every minute of the day with your cousins Shae and Joey, and you miss them a lot now. You have gotten super fast in crawling, and you have even started going to "school" I think you like it, all the teachers there LOVE you! You are getting better at walking with help, and you are even starting to walk while only holding on with one hand!! Yesterday you said MAMA for the first time, and I nearly cried! You miss Aunt Jaime and her magic sleep whisperer self, but we are managing trying to get you to stay asleep. You LOVE to eat, and thankfully you aren't a picky eater like your father. There isn't a food you don't like, although we still haven't tried red meat, fish, or strawberries yet. You make me so proud of the little girl you are becoming, and I am starting to panic over how fast you are growing up. There are so many firsts coming up so fast, first school pictures next week, first trip to pick apples, to the pumpkin patch. We also have your first Halloween. Just know that mama loves you very much and I cannot imagine my life without you in it. Keep growing sweet baby. Mama loves you!

XOXOXOXO
MAMA

First Video

So, I have decided that I am terrible when it comes to capturing moments on film or video. So, for our family vacation we bought the flip cam. It was there, but you hardly ever saw me us  it. I have 2 sisters who are fantasic with the camera and so I let them capture all of the moments on vacation. Well, I did use it to capture 2 of the sweetest kids singing one of my favorite songs. Hope you enjoy it too.

Tuesday Confessions

Sometimes I feel like I wear many hats. I am a mother, wife, sister, daughter, aunt, cousin, niece, friend, nurse, and student. Sometimes it feels like I am everything all at once. Sometimes I feel like that is a HUGE weight on my shoulders, and I have to admit it, sometimes I am stressed beyond belief trying to balance all of the hats at one time. I feel like I am pulled in every different direction all at the same time as well. I have the weight on my shoulders trying not to let anyone down, myself included. I take care and worry about everything and everyone that I am always the last on my mind. I very rarely take care of myself because after I fulfill all my other jobs, there is no time left in the day for me. At one time, I used to care about how I looked, how I felt about myself. Then, I didn't really care. Now...I do care. Today, after getting a pep talk from an awesome person Katie that I wish was my friend in real life, I decided to take the bull by the horns and start to care for myself, because if I don't care for me, who will. I went back to tracking my food and exercise using LoseIt. I even started a couch to 5 K program. The key is going to be keeping me interested. My job also reimburses me for a gym membership, so I am thinking about doing that 2 days a week. I mean with Makayla going to daycare, it gives me 2.5 hours a day for me to do me, so why not work on being a better me so I can be a better mother, wife, daughter, sister, etc. Heck, I am even on vacation and getting a manicure tomorrow because well, why not. I need to stop trying to please everyone all the time. I need to spend more time caring about me, because if I don't care about me, who will?!
That's my Tuesday confession. Which, I have to confess came to me while I was doing my c25k workout today. Have a great night. Try to stay warm and dry.

My bags are packed, I'm ready to go

Today, we leave for our family vacation. But, the "fun" of packing started yesterday. Makayla wanted to make sure I didn't leave her behind...

So, whatever your holiday travels, have fun and be safe! I might not be blogging a lot because of vacation, but I will try to so you can at least see how much fun we are having! Stay safe and Happy travels!