Baptisms, spoons, and airplanes – oh my!

So much has been going on over the last couple weeks – where to start?

First things first: Vivian’s big announcements. On the 14th, she was baptized! Her new godparents, Luis and Kelli, got into town on Friday night, and we caught up over a meal of Indian food takeout. It was so nice to relax with good friends! The next morning we got Vivi ready for the big event; Kelli and Luis picked out the prettiest baptism dress for Vivi. I almost cried when I saw it – it was even lovelier in person, if you can imagine.

The ceremony was with 8 other children, most about Vivian’s age. Vivi was so good! As Luis mentioned at the time, he expected no less from her as she’s very proper and ladylike. Vivi is definitely an observant baby; she tends to watch and listen – not a lot of fussing from that gal.

It was truly a special, blessed day.

Thanks so much to Kelli and Luis for being such an important part of Vivi’s life. Vivian is so lucky to have you as her padrino and madrina!

Other than Daddy, Vivi only snuggles like this with one person: Luis! So, so sweet.

In addition to being baptized, Vivian has been a busy little lady! She has started solids (not a big fan), she’s sitting up on her own, and she’s even starting to scoot and inch around.

Eating solids is not all it’s cracked up to be, y’all. Vivi is not a huge fan of… well, anything. So far she’s tried rice cereal, oatmeal cereal, carrots, sweet potatoes, green beans, bananas, and applesauce. We keep trying, and we are making it as fun as possible. If she doesn’t feel like opening wide for a spoonful, I’ll just let her swirl her baby food around on her tray with her fingers. We’ve had some success with sweet potatoes and apples, but even then, it’s only a few bites. Luckily, solids are really only “snacks” until she is 9-12 months old. Her pediatrician said that for now it’s more about the learning experience than the quantity consumed.

Spoons are delicious, though! The bigger, the better.

Vivi is also sitting up all by herself. She went from assisted sitting to sitting up like a pro with seemingly nothing in between. One day she needed me or a pillow to lean on. The next day she was sitting, reaching for toys, twisting around, leaning over on her arm – like I said, a sitting pro! Here’s a recent pic of Sugar Bear and her toys (courtesy of my sister’s phone).

Last but not least Vivian is seriously thinking about going mobile. She’s been inching forward and backwards and can scoot a foot or more forward if properly enticed (read: if you put a remote or cell phone in front of her). Right after we returned from our trip to Arkansas (more on that later) she decided to pop up on her hands and knees for a few seconds – her belly was completely off the ground! It was a huge moment in the Ray household – lots of clapping and cheering.

Speaking of Arkansas, we just got back from our first family trip. Before Vivi was born, we made plans to visit Brad’s grandparents, Aunt, Uncle, and cousins; we settled on July because we thought flying with a 6 month old would be easier than flying with a tiny baby. I’m not sure if we were right about that or not, but I will say that the travel wasn’t bad!

We didn’t do an early morning flight as Brad and I usually would; we opted for a 10:45am flight because we knew it would be after Vivi’s morning wake-up but before her morning nap. This actually worked out great – she was happy and well-rested while we checked in and waited for our flight but just tired enough to fall asleep after we ascended. The plane on the first leg of the flight wasn’t full, so we were able to keep her car seat in an open seat next to us – perfect for a little snooze. On the second flight of the trip she was awake, but we were able to distract her with some new toys. I also regularly nursed her to keep her ears from hurting. It wasn’t quite a piece of cake, but it was surprisingly pleasant.

Our visit in Arkansas was so much fun. We ate lots of great food (Brad’s Aunt Cindy and his Nana are both wonderful cooks), talked, and laughed with family. Vivi got to spend lots of time with her cousins, and she was also able to make a new best friend – Daisy, Aunt Cindy’s shih tzu. Let me tell you, Vivi and Daisy had so much fun together. One of my favorite Daisy/Vivi moments was Vivian waking up one morning and reaching for Daisy’s face right outside the pack-n-play with the biggest smile on her face. Super sweet moment!

The trip home was not quite as easy as the trip to Arkansas, but when is the return home ever quick? Vivi fussed a bit – largely due to having almost no naps that day – but I was actually able to nurse her to sleep for part of the flight which was a blessing. If I ever travel with a baby again, I’ll definitely bring the Boppy pillow. It was super handy for nursing, and it also gave Vivian a comfortable place to cuddle and sleep (this flight was full – no room for her car seat).

All in all, it was a wonderful trip! Now we’re home and getting settled back into normal life. Vivi has been sniffling today – maybe she caught some germs on the flight? I told Brad while we were in the air that she had touched more public surfaces during three days of travel than she had in the 6 months prior; germs were bound to find their way into her always-willing-to-chew mouth.

Oh, and Vivian has two tiny teeth starting to poke through her bottom gums! Like I said, she’s a busy gal.

Hope y’all have a great week.