First Family Vacation - Charleston and Savannah

A couple weeks ago, Travis, Stella and I took our first big vacation as a family. We had traveled to Tennessee and Colorado to visit friends, but this was our first official vacation. Like where we had to stay in hotels, eat out, etc. Overall, we had an amazing time. We flew to Charleston, spent a few days, drove to Savannah and then back to Charleston for another night.  But, it was tough. We knew this vacation would be very different than others we had taken, but it took a few days to fully grasp that fact. We spent way more time in the hotel than we were used to, and fine dining pretty much flew out the window by the second day!

Charleston was lovely, and our favorite parts were definitely the beaches. There are so many, and they are just beautiful! Stella loved the beach so much. It was such a joy to see her get so excited and love the water and sand. She was just too cute!

Savannah was easy. We stayed in the historic downtown and could walk everywhere. Savannah would be a bit more fun with an older child or without children at all, but we made the most of it. We enjoyed some takeout, and an Ink Master marathon. That show is now my new fave! The architecture and city was so beautiful, and we really enjoyed the live music at The City Market.

Though Travis and I seriously considered flying back early during the first couple of days, we are so glad we didn't. Stella was really great but adjusting to vacationing with a baby took some getting used to. We are usually always on the go on trips, fairly scheduled, and we love to eat out! We gave pretty much all of that up on this trip, but we still had a wonderful time. I'm so proud of us for going for it and am so grateful for amazing memories with my little fam!

Here are some of my favorite pictures from our trip. I am a very blessed woman.

11 months!

Wow, kudos to moms of littles who can keep up a blog. I certainly do not fall in that group. And, to make myself feel better, I am going to be judgey and say they must be ignoring their children. Ha! Either that, or they have babies who sleep regularly. Or mad time-management skills. Whatever it is, it is not something I've figured out. That's for sure!

Stella is turning one on September 22. I can't believe it! So, I'm a little behind on this post.

I weighed her closer to the 11-month mark, and she weighed in at 24.5 lbs. That's a little less than last month so I think she is starting to even out a bit. I didn't get a chance to measure her for height.

The biggest change is that she is full-on walking like a champ now. She's been walking for a couple of weeks now, and it is just crazy around here. I am a pretty big fan of it, though, because it's so nice to be able to put her down and just let her go. She's still kind of zombie-ish, but she is quick already!

That also means shoes are now a necessity instead of an accessory. We got her feet measured, and she wears a 5W. Good baby shoes are expensive by the way! I am a tad bit excited to be shoe shopping for her, though.

Stella is also adding a few more words to her vocabulary. She sort of says "Skittle" now. It's more like "Diddle" with a cute little inflection, but I think it counts. And, in addition to "mama" and "dada" and "babee" she says "dog" (well, in her own tongue, of course), and "bath."

It's so fun to watch her grow and develop. Just amazing really. She now has nine full teeth with a few more poking through. Baby molars are ginormous by the way! I always think she's chewing a wad of gum or something before I realize it's just one of her mondo molars.

Stella still does not sleep through the night, but we are unwilling to let her "cry it out." And, as a tradeoff, she doesn't sleep through the night. It won't be like this forever, though. I am so used to interrupted sleep at this point that I don't even feel all that bad. It's just part of my life now.

We took Stella on our first family vacation this past week so I look forward to sharing about that. It was definitely the least vacation-y trip to date, but it was a great experience. I can say that now that it's over. haha! It was rough at times, but introducing her to the beach made it all so worth it! Poor little lady should not be landlocked!

Here are a few pictures from 11 months. Hopefully I'll have a chance to share some vacation photos soon.

These pics are a little older but still fun to share. The smile she's making in the one with me is one of her famous faces. Cracks us up!