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.