Kimber's First Bee-Day: The PARTY!

On Saturday, we threw Kimber a BEE-day party for the first birthday.

 

We had such a great day surrounded by friends and family and Kimber did great during the party!! I'm glad she got a 1 1/2 hour nap in before the party started so she could enjoy the day!

 

Guests started arriving at 11:00am. We served lunch at 11:30, followed by gift opening and finally sang Happy Birthday to the birthday girl and watched her dig into her birthday cake! The party was over around 1:30pm. It was a fast 2 1/2 hours, but we enjoyed every minute of the party. I could feel the love for Kimber and am so grateful for all of those that traveled near & far to celebrate this milestone in her life!

 

My sister took pictures for me and I couldn't bring myself to look at them for a couple of days. I had such great images in my head of how the party went that I wanted to remember the day in my head. But I knew I had to look at the pictures at some point...and they did not disappoint!! I'm so glad she was able to capture these moments for me {since I was running around crazy most of the time!}.

 

I do wish I would have gotten pictures of Kimber with her Grandparents, Godparents and other friends/families...but I didn't think of it at the time!

 

Mom & Dad & the Birthday Girl

 

 

 

 

Mom & the Birthday Girl

 

 

Food table:

We served ham/turkey sandwiches, pasta salad, chop-chop salad, taco salad and fresh fruit.

I decided to go with cold sandwiches & salads for 2 reasons.

1. I didn't want to deal with the timing of cooking things and having them all done at the same time.

2. It was the first official weekend of summer and I wanted to have lots of summer salads for everyone to enjoy!!

 

Food Table Decorations:

Chalkboard print: ordered from Etsy and attached it to a piece of canvas

Rag garland: I made myself {with the help of family!}

Black & Yellow containers: Purchased from Hobby Lobby earlier this spring

 

 

 

 

Drink Table:

We served strawberry lemonade, water, juice, mama's juice {wine} and daddy's juice {beer}.

The juices were located on a table in the garage where everyone ate.

 

Drink Table Decorations:

I displayed pictures of Kimber from her first holidays in the old window frame.

Rag garland: I made myself {with the help of family!}

Black & Yellow containers: Purchased from Hobby Lobby earlier this spring

 

 

Cake Table:

Kimber's Aunt Paige made the cakes for her party! They turned out adorable! They might not be exactly level...but they were made with love and that's what really matters!!

 

We also served bee cookies, oreo cookies and scotcheroos on a stick

  

Cake Table Decorations:

Monthly photo banner: I made myself

Tissue Poms & Lanterns {not in pictures}: Hobby Lobby

  

 

 

 

 

 

 Gift Table:

We set the gift table and cake table in the dining room and left enough room for all the kids to sit on the floor to watch Kimber open gifts!

 

Gift Table Decorations:

Chalk board: Purchased from Hobby Lobby earlier this spring

Black & Yellow containers: Purchased from Hobby Lobby earlier this spring 

Fabric banner: Ordered from Etsy {the same shop that made her bee-day outfit}

 

 

 

Time to open gifts!! I opened gifts {with the help of Chloe} while Kimber sat in her chair eating cookies and playing with toys/balloons. I've been to enough first birthdays to know it's not much fun to watch a one year old try to open gifts when they have no clue what is going on. I didn't want to drag the gift opening process into an hour event for guests!

 

Kimber received so many nice gifts from friends & family. We are truly blessed to be surrounded by such amazing people!!

 

Kimber ate cookies, while I struggle to open the first gift! Scissors were required!

 

 

 

 

 

 

And finally it's CAKE time!! I found candle letters that spelled Kimber's name at the local party store! Well, actually they spelled Kimberly...but remove the -ly and you have Kimber!

 

Kimber is a very clean eater, so we didn't get any messy shots of her eating!

 

Highchair Decorations: 

Bee-day Outfit: Ordered from Etsy

Rag garland: I made myself

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you to all our friends & family that helped Kimber celebrate her first bee-day!!

Kimber's First Bee-Day: Party Prep

Things have been pretty crazy around our house lately!!!

We have something going on every weekend - weddings, graduations, birthday parties, etc.

We've been trying to get our house ready to sell, which is hard to do when you are gone every weekend and taking care of a baby during the week.

It's planting season and Nick has been in the fields non-stop - so it's just been me & Kimber at home most nights which doesn't leave much time for any extras to get done beyond the normal dishes, laundry, dinner and bath time.

I traveled out of town for work {which was a nice little mini vacation for me} but I had to pack, unpack and get all Kimber's things organized before I went out of town.

On top of everything else, I've been planning Kimber's first birthday party!! And if you know me and my love of party planning - you know how anal I am when it comes to planning parties and the hours of prep work it takes! I'm stressed to the max and am constantly making lists so I don't forget anything, but I love the planning process!!

Before Kimber was even born, I had decided her first birthday party was going to be a bee theme {if we had a girl} and once I make up my mind about a theme - I can't get it out of my mind! Here is a sneak peek at some of her birthday details:

Invitations:

 

Source: tomkatstudio

Outfit:

 

Source: Sherbet Baby Etsy Shop

Chalkboard:

 

Source: alittlehopedesigns

The are MANY craft projects that I'm currently working on including {but not limited to} monthly photo banner, rag garland for her high chair, paper banners and tissue poms. Along with making crafts, I am trying to keep up on all the related birthday tasks organized: cake prep {her Auntie Paige is making the cake for her}, ordering cookies, finding enough tables & chairs, setting up the gift table, cake table, drink table and food table, deciding on food & drinks and the schedule for the day.

Yes, this is how my mind thinks. I even draw out how the table is going to look before I put it together. I create many, many lists. I make lists that relate back to a prior lists. It's crazy. And it drives me insane. But I love it.

I'm sure I'll have lots of pictures after her first bee-day party so stay tuned!!!

Kimber: Eleven Months Old

11 month old. How did this happen so fast?!?! This month has been nothing less than amazing. Kimber has learned so many new things! Some days, she is doing something at the end of the day that she didn't know how to do when she woke up that morning! It just amazes me how fast she is learning & growing. And she loves to mimic us. If we stick out our tongue or cough or clap or smile -  she's going to do it.

She has become such a snuggler & kisser this month. It all started when we were gone on our trip to Punta Cana. Gramma would put Kimber's arms around her neck and hold tight. When we got back - she wrapped her arms around my neck and squeezed me tight. I about melted!! Now, she even gives hugs & kisses to her stuffed animals.

Remember when I was concerned because she wasn't rolling over, scooting, crawling, pulling herself up or doing any of those things? In a matter to 2 weeks, she mastered all of them. Now we can't get the girl to stay in one place. It's so cute how excited she is to crawl to something since she realizes she can get there on her own! We put up baby gates this month to keep her in the living room. When the gate is closed, she'll sit next to it and doesn't even bother to play with her 500 toys that are in the room. And ofcourse, the second she sees that it's open - she makes a mad dash to the doorway to try to sneak out!

I cannot believe she will be turning ONE in a month. Even though it feels like this year has flown by - it's been one of my favorites! I could go on & on about this...but it'll probably make me cry, so I'll stop writing about her growing up so fast!

Weight: 20.9 pounds {home measurement}

 

Height: 28.25 inches {home measurement}

 

Diaper Size: Size 3.  

Clothing Size: 9-12 month.

 

 

Sleeping:  Dare I say it? She's finally sleeping thru the night! Most nights. She might wake up one night a week now, but she falls back to sleep easily. 

Getting her to sleep is another story. I've mentioned it before, but she has my sleeping habits. It's hard for her to fall asleep and she's a really light sleeper so even the smallest sounds will wake her up. We know that she needs down time before bedtime. Not too much to stimulate her. She needs to be in a calm environment and she's able to fall asleep. Some nights it takes 15 minutes, while other nights it takes 2 hours! We've tried the cry-it-out method without much success. She gets so worked up that she makes herself sick and throws up. Then we have to change her and her bedding - and she's wide awake!

Same nap schedule is the same. A 30 minute nap at 10am and a 1.5-2 hour nap at 1pm.

 

 

Food: Breast milk & Table food & Cows milk. Nurse at 6am when she wakes up,  8pm before bedtime and she drinks 5oz of breastmilk in a  sippy during the day. We started the transition to cows milk on April 26. We are slowing adding it into her daily sippy and she'll be on 100% cows milk when my frozen milk supply is gone.

She drinks a lot of water with apple juice during the day in her sippy cup. She loves her apple juice!

No more baby food for this big girl! Only table food at this point.
Favorite Foods: pancakes, cheese, bread/toast, mac & cheese, ham, cooked carrots, applesauce, bananas, spaghetti
Least Favorite Foods: mash potatoes, hamburgers, hotdogs

Health: Kimber's ears have been getting better & better. For the first month after her tube surgery, her ears drained on a regular basis. But they've been clear lately and she seems to be feeling much better!

Kimber had her first projectile vomit this month. All.over.the.kitchen. It went on the stove, the floor, Kimber and Mom! I had just gotten done feeding her supper and she was acting a little fussy so I thought either her ears or teeth were bothering her & was getting her some Tylenol. Next thing I knew, she was throwing up all over the place! I stripped us both down & we took a bath together. After she got out of the bath, she was fine. She didn't have a temp, ate a piece of toast and was back to her normal self. I'm thinking she might of just ate too fast or had flem in her stomach? Either way, I'm just glad it didn't turn into anything worse! Oh...and Nick walked in the house just as we were getting in the bath, so he had to clean up the kitchen!! 

Since this episode, she's done it 2 more times. Once, all over Nick while they were laying in bed after I had nursed her in the morning. The second time was at night, after I had nursed her and was getting her ready for bed. Both times, she had been coughing and there was a lot of flem in her throw-up so we know that's the reason she's spit up. It's gross. It smells. It makes a mess. Welcome to the world of parenthood!!

We had our first episode with diarrhea this month. And of course, it was over a weekend when Nick was in the fields so I was home alone to deal with it. 20+ poopy diapers and 6 outfit changes later - it was gone. She must have caught a 24 hour bug. Luckily, she didn't run a temp and wasn't crabby - she just filled her pants a lot!

 

Nicknames: Kimber Sue. Kibber. Sissy {by mom}
 

 

Likes: {new} Apple Juice. Showers. Giving Hugs.  Kisses. Stuffed Animals. Sharing. Being on the move.

This girl LOVES to drink water with apple juice {diluted in 4:1 ratio}. There are times that she will suck down 10 ounces within 5 minutes several times a day! Which means, we have a lot of very full, very heavy diapers!

Kimber has always loved bath time. This month, she started taking showers with Daddy and she loves it! Nick holds her under the water and sways back & forth. It must be really relaxing for her because she almost falls asleep every time!

She loves to give hugs & kisses these days. And I LOVE it! She gives me the best squeezes around the neck! It's adorable watching her gife her stuffed animals and dolls hugs & kisses too!

She has started playing with stuffed animals this month. Great Gramma & Grampa brought her back a stuffed Lady {from Lady & the Tramp} and I didn't think she's even want to play with it. But she loves to 'talk' to it and squeeze on it. Since then we've gotten her a couple more for her to play with.

Kimber is at the stage where she loves to share with others. Her paci. Her sippy. Her half eaten soggy cookie.

Now that she has learned to crawl, she loves being on the move. As soon as she spies something she's not suppose to have - she takes off across the room after it! We really have to watch her now!!

{same as last month}: Fisher-Price Laugh & Learn Love to Play Sis' Puppy. Vtech Sit to Stand Walker. Eating. Bath time. "Getting Mommy & Daddy".  Puffs. Music/Dancing. Standing. Scooting around. Walker. 

 

Disikes {new}: Getting told 'no'. Face Washed. 

She's beginning to understand when she's getting corrected and will cry when you tell her no. This usually happens when she drops food on the floor in her highchair or she bites or pulls your hair.

Like every other kid in the world, she hates getting her face washed or nose cleaned off.

{same as last month}: Getting Dressed. Changing her diaper.

 

Words: dada, hi and mama

 

Things to note:
Kimber's top 2 teeth came in this month. {Top Right Tooth: April 4 and Top Left Tooth: April 19}. So far teething has been fairly easy. We actually didn't even know she was teething until her first tooth cut through. I've heard from this point on the teeth that come in hurt much worse than the front 4.

Kimber is all over the place now and I want to note the milestones of these dates:
Go from tummy to sitting up: April 2
Pulled herself up for the first time: April 14
Crawled for first time: April 15

Now that she's moving, she's really starting to lose her chubbiness. I've noticed it mostly in her thighs. She doesn't have the rolls like she used to and she's really started to stretch out! She's starting to look like such a big girl!

We transitioned Kimber from the bottle to the sippy shortly after she turned 10 months on March 31. It was actually really easy. Much easier than I thought it would be. I heard stories about how hard it is to take away a bottle and I wasn't looking forward to it. We had been giving Kimber a sippy cup with water since she was 6 months old. At first, it was more of a toy for her and she didn't understand how to use it. But eventually she figured out how to drink out of it. So one day, I decided to put her milk in her sippy instead of her bottle for daycare and we never looked back. She drank from it fine. Let's hope breaking her from the paci goes this easy!!

Kimber has really become a mama's girl since we've came back from our vacation. Any time I enter a room, she looks for me and wants me to hold her. She'll still go to other people, but she want to come back to me after a short time. I love that she wants her mama, but it makes it hard to get things done, too!

While on our trip, Kimber also learned how to wave hi & bye-bye. It's the cutest thing ever! Nick's parents took her to church and someone waved to her during the service and she waved back. Since then - she hasn't stopped. I love it when she waves to Nick and says "Hi, Dada". It's too adorable!

Kisses. Kisses. Kisses. After daycare on April 23, Kimber & I were playing in the living room and she started giving her doll kisses...with tongue. I give her no less than 100 kisses a day, so I'm sure that's where she picked it up. But I'm not sure where she picked up the tongue part?!?

Kimber also learned to give high fives this month and she loves give you a high five and then giggle.

On April 7, we had our follow up appointment with AEA to go over her assessment. They said she was slightly low on her gross motor skills development and she could use some physical therapy session to teach us ways to help her develop these skills. However, when they showed up for the appointment and saw her moving around and doing so many new things - they said she's fine and there is nothing to worry about!

Kimber celebrated her first Easter with my family in Sioux Falls, SD. I blogged about it here, here and here.

And the most important update this month: She finally said MAMA!! We were grocery shopping on Sunday {April 27} and it was pouring rain, so Nick went to get the vehicle when Kimber & I waited for him. I was saying mama over & over trying to get her to say it and then she did!! Nick didn't believe me until we got home and later that afternoon she said it again. I was SO happy to hear those words from her!