Tiff's Turn

This is my last post of 2013. I should be planning and writing about 2014 goals, but I honestly don't have anything concrete yet. We do have big plans for 2014, although I'm not ready to discuss all of that yet. There will probably more to come on that in a month or two. I have been thinking about running goals. All I have so far is to begin keeping a paper/pencil log of miles ran and walked. I'm not setting a miles goal for the year because who knows what the spring solstice will bring. 500 miles sounds like a good goal, but I am trying to keep in mind goals need to be realistic, so little goals throughout the year are what I have planned. My last run of the year this evening was a 5k. Hopefully my first run of the year will be tomorrow. My mom came over for a bit today to watch Aria so I could run some errands. I think Mom enjoyed seeing all of Aria's new toys, like her baby doll.  My errands consisted of getting ready for New Year's eve tonight..

Eight months has been my favorite baby age so far. I love everything about 8-month Aria. Some of the reasons why I love eight months are due to me being more comfortable and not always feeling like I have no idea what I'm doing anymore. For starters, we have nap time all figured out. I know her tired cry and when to put her in her crib. Sometimes she will fuss a little bit, but she is usually asleep in a few minutes. Today, she didn't fuss at all. She immediately rolled over and went to sleep. Another reason I love this age is because reading has become a little easier. Aria pays more attention to the books and best of all, she is now turning each page on her own. This makes me so giddy! Each time she turns the page on her own, I praise her. I can just see the pride in her eyes and smile after every page turn. Play time is another reason why I love this age. With her able to sit up, we can do so much more with toys and playing around.

Friday was supposed to start out with reading time of Aria's brand new kids' Bible. Page one, "In the Beginning" and she decided to rip the page right out. I guess that's why this book says it's for older kids, not babies. Aria is teething again, which means sleeping a good chunk of the day. When she wasn't asleep, I was able to get her out to do some errands around town. Stop one was Price Chopper, which has fun carts for the kids. Who knew? It's funny how you don't even notice things like kid carts at a store you're at all of the time until you have a kid of your own that's old enough for one. She was so cute, turning the wheel like a real driver. All I really needed to do in Price Chopper was drop off our RedBox movies, but I went ahead and walked up and down every aisle so she could "drive". After another nap, it was lunch time. I'm still a little nervous about letting Aria try

Being at home with Aria all week has been a blast. The two of us have less than a week together before my break ends, though. It's going fast. I love a good deal, so since it was the day after Christmas I thought I would be able to find some fabulous sales. I took Aria and Mom out with me. Aria being able to sit up on her own now makes shopping a little easier not having to mess with a front carrier or stroller. I was out looking for clearance Christmas outfits for next year, but I didn't have any luck. If you see anything adorable on clearance, please let me know! Target and Kohl's were a bust, but at least I did find the ducky bathtub I needed. Aria loves it too! Since I didn't find much at Target and Kohl's, we decided to stop at Red Racks thrift store. Luckily, I found two bags full of cute clothes for Aria. That made my trip into Lee's Summit feel worthwhile. I know many people aren't fond of thrift stores for many reasons, but I

So far during Christmas break, we have had two discoveries. First up: Aria has learned to wave hello when she sees people.  She is still trying to master the wave. She makes a fist and moves her hand up and down instead of left to right, but we all get the picture. Our other discovery is that Aria is probably too big for her swing now that she knows how to make it stop swinging and tries to escape it. The Gilmores had a very blessed Christmas. We started Christmas Eve morning at Grammy's house where Granny Great made waffles. Then we moved on to my parents house.  I was ready to snack on unhealthy treats, even after our waffle breakfast. And Aria just wanted to play with Mimi's measuring spoons all day. Eventually, we got ready for the Christmas Eve service at church. I was excited to put Aria's second Christmas dress on her. This was my favorite out of the bunch. Aria was a very good baby during the service. Even Grammy and