Beckett's First Year: Birth to Age 1

Week 1: February 9 - 15; Beckett's arrival, first sponge bath, Valentine's Day & More

Week 2: February 16 - 22; Smiles, dimples, and lots of chill time with the family

Week 3: February 23 - March 1; Tummy Time and lots of silly faces

Week 4: March 2 - 8; one month old!

Week 5: March 9 - 15; Profile, Family & Long Legs

Week 6: March 17 - 22; St. Patrick's Day & Eyelashes

Week 7: March 23 - 29; A little smile, sleepy-time shots; milestone: sleeping through the night!

Week 8: March 30 - April 5; Change pad table shots; post-bath shot

Week 9: April 6 - 12; Smiles, Shots and Walking with Mom; two months old!

Week 10: April 13 - 19; meeting the Mittelbronns, visits from Mimi and Gigi; outing to Yogli Mogli

Week 11: April 20 - 26; visits from Aunt Devon, Dane & Mimi; a visit to Devon's; travel to B'ham, shopping & a birthday party milestone: first road trip

Week 12: April 27 - May 3; family week (e.g., Mom's last week of maternity leave)

Week 13: May 4 - 10; visit from Mimi and Poppa; first playdate; week with Dad (Mom's first week back to work); three months old!

Week 14: May 11 - 17; Mother's Day; Tummy Time; another week with Dad

Week 15: May 18 - 24; Third Week with Dad; Three Photo Shoots; Lots of Smiley Baby

Week 16: May 25 - 31; Fourth Week with Dad; Trip to the lake; Memorial Day; no more swaddle

Week 17: June 1 - 7; Fifth Week with Dad; lots of tummy time; one photo shoot

Week 18: June 8 - 14; First Week home with Mom; 4-month shots; one photo shoot; four months old!

Week 19: June 15 - 21; a week of teething; two photo shoots; a lunch out; a visit from Gigi & Aunt Devon

Week 20: June 22 - 28; a week of milestones: rolling over & eating solids

Week 21: June 29 - July 5; her first 4th of July; bathtime shots; smiley girl

Week 22: July 6 - 12; smiley shots; lunches with friends; visits to gym; five months old!

Week 23: July 13 - 19; visit from family; travel to Birmingham

Week 24: July 20 - 26; lots of smiley shots; headband; well adjusted

Week 25: July 27 - August 2; Catch Air, "driving" her walker

Week 26: August 3 - 9; smiley shots!; six months old!; milestone: tooth pushing through!

Week 27: August 10 - 16; 6-month shots; high chair; outdoor pool

Week 28: August 17 - 23; cowgirl; testing out stroller; milestone: two bottom teeth in!

Week 29: August 24 - 30; lots of tummy time and visits with both of her grandmas!

Week 30: August 31 - September 6; lake trip, first Auburn game

Week 31: September 7 - 13; zoo trip; splash park; seven months old!

Week 32: September 14 - 20; lots of swinging; heavy iPhone/insgram shots vs. SLR; milestones: reverse crawling, said dada, sits up for a LONG time alone!

Week 33: September 21 - 27; lots of yoga, said hi

Week 34: September 28 - October 4; lots of Sophie; visit from Mimi

Week 35: October 5 - 11; time with friends!; eight months old! milestone: first Auburn game

Week 36: October 12 - 18; first visit to Auburn; first game

Week 37: October 19 - 25; two mud-pie photo shoots; two park playdates; milestones: pulling up, feeding self much better - peas, bananas, etc. - it's going well!

Week 38: October 26 - Nov. 1; milestones: first Halloween; first slumber party with Gigi sans Mom & Dad 

Week 39: Nov. 2 - 8; lots of iPhone shots at home with Mom while Dad spent most of the week in St. Louis; milestone: 3 more teeth in on bottom

Week 40: Nov. 9 - 15; Ben's Birthday Party; Visit to Pink Pig; Visit to Auburn for UGA game; nine months old! milestone: 1 more tooth in on bottom - all 4 now!

Week 41: Nov. 16 - 22; Lots of indoor time and visits with friends and neighbors; visit from Mimi and a trip to Nordstrom to see ATC friends

Week 42:  Nov. 23 - 29; Two visits from Gigi; visit from Aunt Devon; visit to the Porters and the Martins  milestones: first Thanksgiving; takes steps while pushing walker

Week 43: Nov. 30 - Dec. 6; visit with the Martins for Thanksgiving; meeting bestie Peyton; Visit from Santa and Uncle Zach; first playdates at her house milestone: free standing for several seconds not holding onto anything with legs unlocked!

Week 44: Dec. 7 - 13; week at home with mom; visit to new gym while normal gym was renovated; visit from Peyton & Sharon ten months old!

Week 45: Dec. 14 - 20; visit from Monica; visit from Tyson; visit from Sharon & Peyton; Gift Exchange with Abby & Hanna milestone: first time getting sick - double ear infection :(; antibiotics

Week 46: Dec. 21 - 27; Beckett's first Christmas Eve & Christmas; visit to Jane & Charles; visit from Martins, Porters and Gigi

Week 47: Dec. 28 - Jan. 3; Saturday to Saturday ski trip; lots of 1:1 time with Mimi;  milestones: First Ski Vacation; First Flight; First time on Marta; First time to Colorado 

Week 48: Jan. 4 - 10; flight home to Atlanta; sick week; milestone: second time getting sick - viral intestinal infection aka stomach bug eleven months old!

Week 49: Jan. 11 - 17; lots of fun with new kitchen!

Week 50:  Jan. 18 - 24; three-day visit from Mimi!; milestones: high-fiving; shaking head; first step

Week 51: Jan. 25 - 31; Atlanta's snowmageddon; mostly home with mom and lots of family time!

Week 52: Feb. 1 - 7; party prep; trips to the gym & mall

I am One! Our 1-year-old : A look back at BG's first year and favorite things!

How Atlanta's Carmageddon/Snowpocalypse Impacted Us

First of all, we are all home safe and sound and have been since last night around 6:20 p.m. The day began totally normal, as in Austin drove in to work and me and Beckett  had our morning at home and then left the house around 10:30 a.m., swung by the drycleaners, and then went to the 11 a.m. class at the gym. At noon when my class ended I checked my phone and saw that my mother-in-law had texted saying it was snowing in Birmingham - weird! I got Beckett at 12 p.m. and saw out the window at the gym that it was snowing in Atlanta - brrr! I decided to skip our Walgreen's errand and go straight home. Beckett had lunch then went down for a nap, and then I started baking cupcakes for an upcoming playdate. Me and my friend Sharon started texting as her and her 2-month-old were planning to come visit us at 3 p.m. after Beckett's nap. She asked if Austin was getting off work early due to the snow and I had no idea so I called him at 1:15 p.m. He was in great spirits, had just had lunch with a colleague and was in his car leaving work as they had gotten dismissed.

Austin's office is 19 miles/6 exits from the house and his commute typically takes anywhere between 30 - 45 minutes up 400N. We figured he'd be home by 2 p.m., maybe even 2:30 p.m. at the latest. But it took him 2 hours to get to 400N (this is normally a 5-minute drive, maybe). He was like 'Kel, I have water, I have food, I have my long coat and my ski shell, I have my gloves, and I have audio books. I'm staying on the highway and I will get home, it's just going to take a while.' It did. We talked on and off all day, I texted with his mom, my mom, my neighbors and friends. Me and Beckett turned on Channel 11 which covered the snow storm all day.

He ended up getting home at 6:20 p.m., so 19 miles in a little over 5 hours, 4.5 hours longer than normal. I don't know how he did it. I'm just not that patient. I would have pulled off. I would have freaked out. But he just patiently and persistently steadied the course and I'm so proud of him. Even when he got to our exit he plugged on past it as there is a big 'up' hill to get to our house, so he figured if he took the next exit he could go down the hill vs. up it. Great idea, but the roads were already icing at this point and the exit was blocked by cars who all spun out trying to get up a small hill. So he cut off, went through an office park, and managed to get to our street and go up the hill and get home! Seeing him pull in was wonderful!

While I was like Austin, this is CRAZY, 5 hours??!!, he ended up being one of the lucky ones as many of our friends were stranded. I reached out to my mom's group and found that lots of mommies and daddies couldn't get home and were staying overnight in hotel lobbies, their cars, Home Depot, etc. And this was going on in Birmingham, too, friends stranded at CVSs, Publix, their offices, having to abandon their cars due to no more gas and no gas available for purchase, walking to get their kids at daycare, friends whose kids had to spend the night at daycare - my father-in-law even walked home from work! Many friends were also trapped in their work parking decks, unable to leave if they wanted to. We were glued to the TV like OMG what can we do?! This is crazy, we are so fortunate, wow...

We got Beckett to bed around 7:30 p.m. then went back to the news and phones to check in on family and friends. Around 9:45 p.m. Austin was talking to his Dad and I got a text from one of my AutoTrader.com co-workers and friends Jenn. She was on 400N at our exit and they had closed 400! A tractor trailer had jackknifed blocking the road and it wasn't safe - she couldn't make it home but COULD make it to our house so we told her to come on over! Poor thing had been in the car since 3:30 p.m., hadn't stopped even to use the bathroom as she just sat and sat to get 15 miles in 7 hours. We were so glad she reached out and that we were able to help just by being home and having water, wine, food and a guest room! While the circumstances were beyond unfortunate we enjoyed catching up with her and having her stay over. She was able to get home safely today just after lunch - we are so happy for her!

So that's our story. Me and Beckett were here, home and safe. Austin made it home after traveling 19 miles in 5 hours inching up 400N. And we were able to be there for Jenn -  it was the least we could do - so glad we were here and so glad she called and was able to get here safely. 

What a nightmare. I am just in disbelief about this whole thing. It was such a normal day until it wasn't, you know? It's shocking and scary and I truly can't describe how fortunate I feel to know, right now, that all of my loved ones are safe and warm. I hope the same can be said for all in Alabama and Georgia ASAP.

I realize this is somewhat of a weird post but I had to get this all out here just to like read it again and be like 'this happened.' K - i'm out. Hope you're all safe and seriously considering putting together a small emergency car kit (if you don't have one already) - I know I am! And in case you're wondering, the poodles LOVE the snow, especially Reuben! (no, I'm not being sarcastic - it's adorable seeing them play out there!)

Week 50: 7 Days of Beckett

Day 344 (1/18);  out for Mexican with Mom & Dad! She does GREAT at this restaurant just keeping to herself and eating beans, rice, chicken and avocado!

Day 345 (1/19); "walking" around at Harper's First Birthday party!

Day 346 (1/20); cooking up  a mess in her kitchen! She loves it - I add things to it all the time, the latest being these little tupperwares from Ikea that are too small for anything we use but perfect for her little baby hands!

Day 347 (1/21); I have so many pictures from this day of her crawling and playing but this one of her peering from around her pack & play where she was playing with off limits stuff like her wipes & cream cracks me up; I'll go "Beckett" and she looks around the corner - heart it!

Day 348 (1/22); the easiest shots to get - bath time! She loves it so much, especially sucking on wash cloths, her bath book and bath toys (and splashing around trying to stand up - eek!)

Day 349 (1/23); Mimi visited from Wednesday - Saturday! They had so many fun times and she was a lifesaver enabling me to get so much birthday prep done as well as not-Beckett-friendly errands - thank you, Mimi Michelle!!

Day 350 (1/24); Beckett back in bath drinking water from her wash cloth. Sigh! This girl is a nut! I think it feels good on her growing teeth!

Likes:

• her kitchen; everything about it, especially the little pans
• her walkers; especially when we chase her around on one while she's on one - so cute
• climbing the stairs - she LOVES it and smiles so hard
• standing - she loves to be up and prefers to be holding a small toy or her sippy cup; normally she was against something (a stool, the couch, a walker, the wall) but this week she stood on her own a lot more and even took a step - eep!
• her new activity space/room - she seemed to like having a new space in the house to play in (helps break up the day when we play in the morning in the living room; midday at the gym's toddler room and then afternoon in the activity room!)
• books - give this girl a book bin and she'll take each out and turn the pages on them over and over!
• things that aren't hers - the dog's bandannas, towels, water bottles - if it's free she loves it! haha
• giving high fives! 
• waving hi
• shaking her head from side to side
• dancing while someone claps their hands or sings
• fingerplays like the itsy bitsy spider are HUGE this week (she'll "dance" when you do it!)
• throwing all of her food on the floor. not awesome.
• her new 3 o'clock snack! (we used to just do 3 meals but now she has snacks, too -she seems to enjoy it!)
• eating the inside of her crib - teething girl!

Dislikes:

• having her diaper changed (it's starting to get ridiculous - like she freaks OUT!)
• having iPhones, remotes, etc. taken from her (same as last few weeks!)
• her baby doll - we laugh because she'll take her baby out of the stroller and put her on the floor then take off with the stroller (like nope, not coming with me baby!)
• teething - another new tooth in - up to 7 teeth (4 on top and 3 on bottom - the new one is on bottom!)

Her Week in a Nutshell:

• Saturday: Errands with Mom & Dad and out to eat - Mexican!
• Sunday: Harper's First Birthday Party!
• Monday: Toddler Room at Gym with Mom
• Tuesday: Toddler Room at Gym with Mom
• Wednesday: Toddler Room at Gym with Mom; Visit from Mimi!; out to eat with Mimi, Mom & Dad for Mexican again - yum!
• Thursday: Day with Mimi while Mom ran non-Beckett friendly errands and while Mom & Dad went out to eat Italian with the Blancos!
• Friday: Day with Mimi while Mom took puppers for shots; family night in with Mimi, Mom & Dad

Really Dad, I got It!

Daddy, I got This

Week 49: 7 Days of Beckett

Day 337 (1/11); Beckett is unsure about her new foods, including a black bean and cheese quesadilla

Day 338 (1/12); Beckett is still loving bathtime - guaranteed smiles!

Day 339 (1/13); Sweet baby girl taking her nighttime bottle - hard to believe that in just a few weeks she won't have any more bottles - crazy! :(

Day 340 (1/14); Walking behind her push toy, another wonderful loan from cousin Dane!

Day 341 (1/15); Eating saltines, her new favorite! She had never had crackers or anything like that but when she got the viral intestinal infection the pediatrician strongly recommended we give her saltines with pedialyate. We did of course and she just loved them!

Day 342 (1/16); Beckett is LOVING her new kitchen from friends Maggie & Bonnie; I went to Ikea today and got her some stuffed vegetables and kids pots & pans - adorable! I also got her some small tupperware - she loves to eat it! haha

Day 343 (1/17); I seriously can't get her away from this kitchen! She loves it, even if she's mid-clothing change she'll crawl away from me hyper fast to get to the kitchen and bang on her mini pots and pans!

Likes:

• Push toys (her stroller & doll)
• Opening and closing cabinets and boxes 
• Flipping the light switches
• Her glow worm and twilight turtle shining lights in her dark room before naptime
• The kitchen - everything about it - opening and closing the stove and drawers, taking the (empty) spice jars tupperware out, pressing the buttons on the stove; she also loves her new pots and pans!
• Her fisher price activity puzzle; she especially likes the heart-shaped mirror
• Playing with everything in her change pad supplies (wipes, diapers, diaper paste,, her gold shoes) - she knows this area isn't for her so it makes her want to be there SO much
• Her standard meals: Breakfast (egg, chicken, black beans, avocados and bananas/blueberries); Lunch (turkey, cheese, chickpeas, sweet peas, corn, strawberries); Dinner (sweet potato, chicken, green beans, carrots); she also likes saltines!

Dislikes:

• Nothing new - same stuff (e.g., having the iPhone taken away, having her diaper changed, having clothes put on or off over her head, etc.).

Her Week in a Nutshell:

• Saturday: Family day in while Beckett continued to recover; Night with Dad while mom went to Baby Blanco Gender Reveal (it's a boy! John Andrew!!)
• Sunday: Family day in - Beckett started to feel like herself again!
• Monday: Last day in the Infant room at the gym!
• Tuesday: First day in the Toddler room at the gym!
• Wednesday: Playdate at Catch Air with friends Bonnie, Matthew & Jason; lunch attempt at Another Broken Egg (had to leave before we could order - hit naptime!)
• Thursday: Toddler room at the gym
• Friday: Toddler room at the gym; family night!

Beckett Loves Berries

She has been eating strawberry purée for a while, but she loves whole strawberries, too, and as of yesterday she enjoys blueberries! I mix them together and she loves them both - can't wait for her to try raspberries and blackberries!