Armani's First Birthday

Wow I cannot believe that my sweet, precious baby is one years old. It is truly a bitter sweet time. I miss holding him  in my arms for hours on end and cuddling with him in my bed late at night, but watching him learn and grow is a blessing.

There were man 1st birthday party themes, but Armani loves watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse so I decided that would be the perfect and easiest theme. There is Mickey Mouse stuff everywhere! Target, Wal-Mart, cute Mickey shirts at Pac Sun, Deb, H & M, just about everywhere you look. I got a lot of decorations from Wal-Mart and Party City. D'Angelo got my mom and I the cutest Mickey shirts from Debs. We held Armani's party on Sunday, February 8, even though his actual birthday is February 10. My dad is the JV head coach at Morningside and also helps out with the varsity team and they had a basketball game on Saturday against Midland. Midland is the school that my husband graduated from and knows just about everyone at the school so we knew we couldn't miss it.

Saturday night D'Lo's mom and younger brother BJ drove up from Kansas City, MO and meet us at our house after the basketball game. We ordered pizza and then went to bed because we had Armani's party the next day.

How cute is he?!? Reppin the wrong team though

Sunday morning I was up bright and early to start setting up for the big day. Thankfully, my mom and I set up some of the decorations the night before so we did not have as much to do the day of. We all got the rest of the decorations together and my mom and I were pretty proud of ourselves for how things turned out. My sisters are great at decorating and throwing parties so we felt like they would be proud of how things turned out. The party started at 1pm and guest started arriving shortly after we had finished cooking and getting dressed. My grandparents, Dlo's family, and tons of friends showed up to help us celebrate this little mans day! I couldn't thank everyone enough for coming and all the amazing things that got for Armani. I got Armani's outfit off of etsy and I was so happy with it, I swear it was the cutest thing. My good friend Brittany and even got in the spirit and wore her Mickey Mouse ears and shirt.
We knew Dlo's family had to leave early to drive home so we sang happy birthday and gave Armani his cake shortly after everyone was done eating. He was very confused by the cake and just sat there until I took his hands and put them all in the cake. He finally came around and took the big number 1 candle, which had frosting on it and starting eating away. After we cleaned him up it was definitely time for a nap. While Armani was asleep, D'Lo and I opened up all the gifts and chatted with our friends and family before it was time for them all to go. It was a great birthday party and again we have been blessed with the greatest friends and family on this planet!

My Life

A few days ago Armani had his 1 year check up. Poor boy had to get four shots and his finger pricked. He is to the age that he knows when the doctor is and that good things are not to come. As soon as the doctor walked in the room he clung to me, crying and looking terrified. Armani weigh 23 lbs and was 29 inches long. Armani still has 8 teeth but his bottom two molers are starting to appear swollen and white. Poor baby always gets two teeth at a time and it is such a painful, and fussy, experience.

Armani is saying mama and dada independently and is always full of energy and smiles. Armani definetly knows who Grandma and Grandpa are and loves being around them. Armani knows what he likes and what he doesn't. His favorite foods are still mac n cheese, hotdogs, yogurt, applesauce, and cereal. Every time I try to give him something new he will put it in his mouth and immediately spit it out. I have to make him a better eater! He knows when someone else is eating and will instantly crawl to them and wait for them to give him a taste. Armani is going through what I would call a fussy period. He will not play with his toys without someone sitting on the floor next to him and even then he is usually just crawling and walking over that person instead of playing with his toys. He loves to be held and he will follow you even if you are just going into the kitchen to grab a drink. He also loves computers and ipads. He will cry and scare until  the person using these devices picks him up and lets him see what they are doing. Armani loves looking at books and having them read to him. He also still loves Mickey Mouse and will sit anywhere to watch his clubhouse friends.

Armani loves his blankies, chocolate chip cookies, milk, and messing with our dog Chloe. He is to the age where changing his diaper or clothes has become a wrestling match. He still is not walking unless he is holding on to someone or something, but I know the day will come soon. That's about all I can think about that is new with our little man. I love him beyond words and feel so blessed to be his mommy!!

 

Armani you put a smile on my face everyday, I miss you when you are sleeping or when I am away from you. You brighten my day with your precious and joyous laugh. I love playing with you, watching you grow, and watching all your milestones. You mean more to me than I could ever tell you! I love you baby boy, stop growing up on me so quickly.

 

Where has the time gone?

As Armani's first birthday quickly approaches I constantly find myself asking where has the time gone? It feels like yesterday that I was in the hospital giving birth to my beautiful baby boy. I cannot fathom how quickly it has gone by. As much as I enjoy this past year with Armani I question whether or not I REALLY embraced and enjoyed it all. I look back and think about all the changes Armani has already been through and wonder if I took enough time to really enjoy him in those stages. Life just happens so quickly and from now on I want to really be in the moment for every moment. That is what life is about right? A bunch of really enjoyable and great moments. I want to make sure I embrace them all. It makes me sad to know that soon my baby will be a little boy, growing more independent each day and needing mommy less and less. 

My big boy!

Like I said, Armani will be 1 in a few short weeks. None of my friends have any children (ugh!) so most of the people I invited to Armani's party are family members, which is totally fine because I know it will be special regardless of who comes. I looked all over pinterest to find the perfect party theme, but with it quickly approaching and our finances where they are I figured a Mickey Mouse themed party would do the trick. There is tons of Mickey Mouse items all over Wal-Mart, Target, etc. So I am excited to have been able to narrow down a few things and get his invitations sent out. 

Armani has been going through A LOT of changes since my last post. He got his first haircut, starting wearing some shoes, switched from formula to whole milk, started eating all types of foods, and no longer drinks from a bottle. Woah, that was a lot for me to even type. Jen is the lady who has been doing my hair since I was 10 years old, she is basically distant family. I knew she would do a great job with Armani's hair and she did. Armani sat on his daddy's lap and I entertained him as long as I could while Jen chopped off his baby hairs. I must say he looks much better and now it is easier to see his cute little curls.

After and Before

 Everyone always asks me why Armani never has shoes on and is always wearing socks. 1. They grow out of their shoes in like 2 days. 2. They aren't comfortable, do you like wearing shoes? (that's what I though) 3. He isn't fully walking yet 4. Books say that it's best for babies to learn how to walk barefoot! (boo-ya) I do really think that shoes on babies are adorable, but like I stated I just didn't want to spend the money on a bunch of shoes he would grow out of. Now I think it is an appropriate time to start putting shoes on his feet because he will soon be walking and his socks are starting to fall of all the time. The only problem is we don't have very many that fit him so I am hoping to get some more these next couple of weeks/months.  

The next big change was switching him from formula to whole milk. The doctor suggested that between his 11 and 12 month that we start slowing transferring him from formula to milk and that by his first birthday he should only need to be drinking whole milk. I started mixing his formula and whole milk together for a few weeks and then just randomly started putting only whole milk in his bottle and so far so good. Plus formula is WAYYY to expensive so I am thrilled that buying formula will no longer be an issue.

The biggest change in Armani's life was to take away his bottle and switch to a sippy cup. I thought that this would be a pretty easy task due to the fact that Armani has been drinking water out of his cup for a couple months now. He did not take very easily to drinking his milk from there, but with some helpful tips from my sister Jill and some other mommy's I found a way to make it work and so far he has been doing excellent! I don't know why I all the sudden got the urge to do all of these new things, but I am glad I did! 

Armani has been devouring hot dogs, mac n cheese, yogurt, french fries, you name it. I love being able to give Armani all different types of foods. You can tell when he is not a fan of something by the look on his face and the fact that he will spit it out. He is kind of a picky eater, but maybe that's how all babies are at some point. He basically only eats the things I mentioned above, as well as some other snacks. There are still a few foods I have not tried so hopefully he will take a liking to those. 

His fav

Armani has 8 teeth, but due to his recent ear infection (his 3rd in 11 months) and him chewing on anything and everything I can tell that more are on their way. Armani is saying mama and dada independently and knows who all of us are especially grandma and grandpa. He is walking around everything and with his walker. We are trying to work on walking with him independently, but it has been a slow process. 

Armani likes to be chased and loves banging on the living room glass table, making tons of loud noises. We have noticed one of Armani's soothing techniques which is him rocking back and forth against either the couch, his crib, or us. He will throw him self back against it and bounce off of it. He has been sleeping fairly well through the night, recently he has been waking up for a little bit, but we have come to the point where we let him just cry himself back to sleep. It doesn't take long, only about 20 minutes and hopefully soon he will know that it is not an appropriate time to be up. 

How much cuter can one get?

Armani with grandma's glasses

Armani is changing everyday and I am loving and soaking up every minute of it. He is growing up and experiencing new things everyday. He loves spending time with his daddy, mommy, grandpa, and grandma. I cherish every moment with him and I am excited to continue planning his birthday party. 

Buddy the Elf, What's your favorite color?!

Since my last post I have been enjoying my break from school. I love being home with my family, watching TV, and cuddling up on the couch. I have one more week until my last semester of school starts so I am soaking in all the down time that I can.

Christmas is by far my favorite holiday! I love watching all different Christmas movies, decorating the tree, spending time with my family, and buying gifts for people. Elf is my favorite Christmas movie with The Grinch coming in as a close second. (hence the title of my post)  I try and watch each of these movies every Christmas. It seems like the older I get, the faster time goes by. I cannot believe that Christmas is over and that the new year has already begun. I was fortunate enough to be able to attend both the Hartnett and Fuchser Christmas's. They happened to fall on the same day so my dad, mom, Armani, and I headed down to Bennington on Friday night in order to see all of the Fuchsers. Christmas used to be at my grandparents house in Emerson, but as the family got bigger and my grandparents got older we moved it to my Aunt Deb and Uncle Micks house in Bennington. Although Christmas is always on a Saturday 3/4 of the family show up the Friday night before. The Fuchsers are ALWAYS early. There is always way too much food. I can't say it enough how much I love being with my family. I loved being able to catch up with my cousins and seeing everyone. That night we stayed in a hotel in Omaha and the next morning we headed back over to my aunt and uncles to open presents before we headed back to get to Hubbard where the Hartnett Christmas was taking place. Around 12 we loaded up and made our way to Hubbard. D'Angelo met us there because he had to work early that morning. Just like the Fuchsers, there was an overload of food and drinks. My favorite part about the Hartnett Christmas is watching my grandparents open their gifts and hearing the wonderful and heartfelt things they have to say about our wonderful family. When I look reflect on the time that I spent with both sides of my family, I realize just how truly blessed I am to grow up in such a big, loving, and caring family.

Hartnett Cousins

Hartnett Christmas

 

 

 

 



D'Angelo's birthday is December 21 and mine is the 28. Both of our birthdays are usually overshadowed by Christmas, but I always try to make it special. D'Angelo loves candy and has the biggest sweet tooth. I found this cute card on pinterest and knew it would be perfect for him. I always made a card from Armani by putting paint on his hands and using them to write "hands down your the best dad"

 

That night we treated D'Angelo to Olive Garden. We had already exchange our birthday and Christmas gifts since would be spending Christmas in Arizona. I got him a pair of timberland boots, and tickets to go see Kevin Hart! He got me a two pairs of Jordan shoes and two Nebraska sweatshirts.

We flew out to Arizona on Christmas Eve morning. Our flight was at 8 am and we arrived in Phoenix at 10 am. For this reason I am glad that Arizona is an hour behind so I get an extra hour to spend with them. Jill, Tim, and Caprilee picked us up from the airport and we headed to Heidi's work to say hello to her before we got settled in. After that we picked up some food because we were all starving and hung out a bit before getting ready for church. That night we all got dressed up and headed to Christmas Eve Mass. 

The Dunbars <3



My beautiful sisters, niece, Armani, and I
 

That night after mass, we order the best pizza I think I have ever tasted. I don't remember where it was from, but I think I could have eaten all of it if I would have let myself. My family has grown up playing games whether it's cards, taboo, catch phrase, or heads up. So it is a must that when we all get together that we play games upon games upon games. And that is exactly what we did. Every single night we spent in Arizona, we would go over to Jill and Tim's, open a beer, and play a bunch of different games. While we were in Arizona we did plenty of shopping, game playing, and relaxing.
Jill and Tim and had recently taken Caprilee to the Zoo lights. Jim kept telling us how great it was and that it exceeded her expectations. The day after Christmas we all bundled up and headed to Zoo lights. It was a little chiller than I wanted it to be in Arizona when it got dark out, so while we were there we all got some hot coco and walked around to gaze at all the beautiful lights and decorations. It was a lot of fun and I was happy that we went.

On my birthday my mom, D, and I went and got pedicures and then that night we all went over to Heidi's place where she made the most amazing appetizers and spaghetti. Of course we played games and had a few drinks. I always try to make my birthday into some big ordeal and it never ends up as fun as I want it to be. But as I have gotten older I realize that spending time with my family, drinking, and playing games is all I ever want to do from now on. It was such a great night and I was so happy that everyone put in a bunch of effort to make my day special.

My hubby and I on my birthday

Capri, Moni, and I

 

 

 

Our time and Arizona came and went. I hate leaving my sisters, niece, and brother-in-law. Caprilee is always at a new stage in her life every time I see her. I got as much QT in as I could with her. I woke up every morning with Armani and headed over to their house so that I could see her. We watched moonies (movies) together, drank malts (milk), and had tons of nacks (snacks). We went to the park together and rode her bike. I can't wait until Armani is her age now because it is so much fun! I can't wait until we are in Phoenix for good so that I don't have to go 5 months without seeing any of them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 





Schools Out and Armani is 10 months!

The last week has been very busy. I had finals this week, D'Angelo ended up with the flu, and Armani has had a rough couple of nights.

Last Saturday D'Lo and I went with my parents to our family friends Christmas party in Hubbard. It was a great time. They always put in so much work. There were Christmas lights everywhere, unlimited alcohol, and tons of great food and music! Here are a few pictures from the night.

Last Sunday we took Armani to go see Santa for the first time!! We got lucky and there was no long line to wait in! Armani was very confused about who this big man was that he was sitting on. We could not get Armani to smile but at least he did not scream and cry... yet.

I am finally done with my second to last semester of college!! I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel and I cannot believe that I only have one semester left. I know graduating from college is a huge deal and that it takes a lot of hard work and effort, but it will have taken me 7 years to graduate when I am finally done. I have a lot of excuses as of why it took me so long; transferred school three times, switched my major, flunked out, took a year off, and had a baby. But all in all I know I will appreciate my hard work so much more looking back on how long it has taken me! This will be a life lesson I can tell my kids as I have wasted A LOT of money and time!! I will definetly be enjoying my break, spending time with my family, and living it up in Arizona!

D'Angelo NEVER gets sick and I feel like I am always running around with a cold or something. Unfortunately D came home Thursday from school not feeling so good and now it is Saturday and he still isn't feeling the best. I would much rather have an ongoing cold than have the flu... I am literally afraid to throw up and will do anything and everything not to. D just went to urgent care so hopefully they can give him something so he can start feeling better.

Like I stated in my last post, Armani was battling RSV and an ear infection. I noticed a rash all over his body on Thursday and rushed him to the doctor. They said that some babies get a rash after they got a virus and that it would go away in a few days. Then Thursday night I was sleeping in the room with him due to the fact that Dlo had the flu (I wanted to make sure I was far away) Aramni woke up at about 1:30 in the morning and I knew he couldn't be hungry because he has been sleeping through the night and when I went to check he had thrown up in this crib a couple times. My poor baby, I thought for sure he had the flu as well. That night it was impossible to get Armani back to sleep, I was up until about 4 am. The only way I got him to sleep was in bed with me so that meant I had a very sleepless night. On Friday he was still a little fussy,  but did not get sick again. Thank goodness. But Friday night again he woke up around 1:45 and he was wet all over so I changed his diaper and his clothes and laid him back down praying he would fall back asleep. Well, he didn't. He was up until almost 5 am and thank God my mom and dad were nice enough to take turns staying up with him with me. I still couldn't sleep knowing that he was up. Let's hope these sleepless nights end and SOON!

Friday night my dad stayed home with Armani so me, my mom, and D'Angelo could get out of the house for a little bit. While we were at the mall my mom bought Armani his first ornament and I got D'Angelo and I our first ornament as well. I hope that this turns into a tradition where we get a new ornament each year to hang on the tree.

Armani's

The Dunbars
 

My mom and I also got our trees and decorations up around the house. I love Christmas and I cannot wait to get my own house to be able to decorate! I hope I can do as good of a job as my mom.

<3



 



Armani is ten months now and I feel like I need to start planning for his first birthday which is crazy to think about. I think back to the day I went to the hospital to give birth to him and how much my life has changed for the better. Armani is still getting into anything and everything and loves to play with other little kids. He recently noticed his hair and starts to pull it really hard when he is angry or tired. He now has 6 teeth with a 7th on the way. Three on the bottom and three on the top. The top 3 all came at one time. Armani is pulling up on everything and loves to stand up in the tub. We definetly can't take our eyes off of him for a second! You never know what he is going to pull onto himself or what you will find in his mouth. He really hasn't said any new words yet but when he is upset he will set his head on the ground or when he wants to be picked up he will sit on the ground and raise his hands in the air. Armani's favorite toy is the vacuum cleaner and will crawl to where ever it is when it is out. He is a little afraid of it once it is actually turned on though. We still try to do as much as we did before like going to basketball games, out to eat, etc, but it is much more difficult now! He is so busy and would much rather be getting into everything and crawling every where than sitting on our laps or in the same spot for too long.

the vacuum

Gotta do anything to keep him entertained

Finally, I decided it was time to chop my hair. I have sported the long hairstyle for quite some time now and I found myself always wanting to put it up in a pony tail because it was always in my face. I am loving my short hair but I know that it will probably be short lived so I will enjoy it for now. I am proud of myself for actually curling it and making it look cute because I am horrible at doing my own hair.