Vivian is finally here!! Her poor Mama (and Daddy) had to wait 41 weeks and 1 day to meet her! But, of course, she was very much worth the wait! 

Vivian Marie 
September 9, 2016
10:58PM
8 lbs, 15 oz
20 3/4 inches

I love that Vivi was born one minute before Hadley's birth time (10:59PM). These girls are little night owls who like to keep their Mommy's waiting! I am so very excited that Hadley will have a girl cousin so close in age! I hope that they will be the best of friends and I look forward to all of the special memories that they will make together! 

I am also thrilled to be a first time Aunt! I can finally add that to my long list of titles (sister, daughter, wife, mommy, godmother, & now AUNT)! Mason and I already love little Vivian so much. She is absolutely precious and we look forward to loving on and spoiling another little Guinn girl! 

Congratulations Cameron & Keisha! Welcome to the wonderful (and exhausting) world of parenthood! The very best is yet to come and we are so excited to watch you begin your new roles as Mommy & Daddy! Love you all! XOXO

When you sign your kid up for Mother's Day Out back in February, September is a reallllllly long wait! Of course, back then I could barely fathom being away from my sweet little princess for more than a couple of hours. Well, guess what!? Mommy's sometimes need a break, too! 

This year, Hadley will be attending Mother's Day Out on Wednesday's from 9am-2pm at a church that I grew up going to. It will be just enough time for me to do a few things that are challenging with a toddler in tow, like running errands across town, doctors visits, or vacuuming... Ha! 

We had a great start to our day this morning. Hadley slept in while I got up, showered, made her lunch, made our breakfast, got her dressed, packed her school bag,  and then we posed for her First Day of School photo session!

It's like she's reading the sign to herself in the last picture. "My first day of what!?!?!" Haha! 

Well no matter how smoothly you plan for your day to go, life isn't without it's surprises and hiccups. Daddy had a tire blow out on his way to work while we were getting ready, and then the tire jack collapsed while he was trying to change his tire, almost causing him to be crushed by his car!!! Luckily, he was not injured, but needed us to bring him a new shirt for work. Nothing like a little drama to start the school year, yikes! 

I dropped Hadley off at 9AM, with only a few tears. She grabbed my shirt tightly once she realized I would be dropping her off for the day, but her teacher, Miss Denise, (who also has a daughter named Hadley) swooped in and distracted her with toys. She was not the only kid crying, either! 

Once I got back in the car, I delivered Mason a new shirt, and then had about 4.5 hours left to kill. I had grand visions of all the things I would do with my free time, but as someone who is not used to free time, I found it a little difficult to be productive. I went to Joann's Fabrics, but lacked focus, so left empty handed. Then I went home and did some laundry, organized Hadley's closet, and picked up around the house. After a few other errands, it was already time to go pick up my sweet girl! Five hours flew by!!! 

I actually got her about 20 minutes early, because I was anxious to see how her day went. Here was her "report card" for the day: 

Her teachers said that she refused her nap and was pretty fussy when they tried to put her down. They said she cried some through out the day, but they both coddled her a lot. Ha! Sounds about right since our Hadley loves to be held.

I'm hoping that each week she will become more comfortable with the routine and eventually won't have such anxiety about being left. As for the napping situation, she's pretty spoiled to a quiet nap in her crib with a fan going, sound machine blaring, and being rocked to sleep, so I'm not sure if she'll ever go down for them without any of those things to help her. We shall see. 

The good news, however, is that she's nice and sleepy when I get her home, so more free time for me! :) Hooray! A Mom could get used to this! :) 

Hadley, I know it was tough, but you had a great day on your FIRST ever First Day of School! We know you have many great things awaiting you in your future! We love you! XOXO
​

"Baby, oh, baby, 
the places you'll go!
The worlds you will visit!
The friends you will know!" 
​
-Dr. Seuss 

This weekend we celebrated Hadley's "Sweet Sixteen". 16 MONTHS, of course! ;) It was another fun month of new tricks learned and an increase in vocabulary and sound effects! Good thing we are nearing the month of October, because Hadley goes around saying "Boo!" and "Mowwww" (Meow) constantly. Such a silly, little sweetheart! 

16 Month Favorites: 

Favorite Book: "Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You?" By: Dr. Seuss. This book teaches various sound effects. She knows to "knock knock" on cue before we even read that line of the book! Smartie! 

Favorite Toy: Still loving on her baby dolls. She also has a slight obsession with chairs. She enjoys moving them around the living room and backing up to sit down on them. She also watches her nursery rhyme shows, while rocking her babies in said chairs. It's pretty adorable!

Favorite Foods: We've eaten a lot of quesadillas this month and she has even learned how to dip her chips in queso. Mainly she just licks it off the chip like a true Texan! :) She also loves any and all kinds of berries!

Favorite Party Trick: She loves to "Cheers" us with her sippy cup at dinner time! Multiple times! Future Delta Gamma! :) 
​
Teeth: She has 9 teeth and a 10th one that is breaking through!

Words: berries, "bapoo" (diaper), done, down, no no no, book, balloon

Sound effects: "Moooowwwww" (meow), "ruff ruff", "weeeeee", beep beep, choo choo, shhhhhhh

What's Hadley Up To?
​
She's always been a pretty clean eater. When she's done with her meal, she also likes to help out by lifting her plate and saying "done", then she lifts up her placemat. She also likes to "help" sweep up any crumbs that made their way to the ground. 

I have nicknamed her the "gatekeeper" because if she notices that the baby gate is open she immediately walks over to close it. Then usually claps for herself at a job well done. She has never once attempted to escape. Why would she want to if Mommy is on the same side of the gate as her?

When I go to get her out of her crib in the morning, the first thing she does is points to her bows and says "bow" and wants one placed in her hair immediately! 

She loves shoes and enjoys bringing them to their rightful owner. You must then put them on your feet. Future shoe salesgirl?

Is an aggressive hugger and kisser. At Kindermusik, she knocked one girl to the ground with her extra loving hug! At story time, she gave a 3 month old baby boy a kiss on the forehead! She is one loving little girl with plenty of affection to give!

She likes carrying things around the house (toys, toiletries, articles of clothing, etc...) and then putting them in random places. Daddy found legos in his boots one morning and Mommy can never find her beauty products without doing a full scale hunt for them!

She tells us when she needs a new diaper, if she has gone #2. She'll say "bapoo" which is her word for diaper. 

Still lots of tears if she gets dropped off at the church nursery. Doesn't like being left with strangers. 

She has started wearing necklaces and also loves to walk around the house wearing bracelets! Such the accessorizer!

She acts out the motions in her nursery rhyme videos. She points when they point, claps, stomps, etc. The cutest, though, is her learning to spin around in a circle with her arms outstretched! 

​She can identify and point to her nose, eyes, mouth, hair, head, and feet!

Hadley, it is an absolute dream getting to watch you learn and pick up new things each and every day. We know that you will continue to thrive as you begin Mother's Day Out this month. You are the sweetest and cutest little thing and we love you very much. We are so proud of you!

Happy Sweet Sixteen! XOXO