Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Gavins! I realize it’s been pretty quiet in our corner of the internet this past week. We decided to unplug and enjoy our very first holiday season as a family of three. It’s been quite the whirlwind over here and we wanted to drop in to say hello and catch you up on life!
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Dessa’s first Christmas wasn’t the only milestone that we celebrated this past week or so. This holiday season has been filled with firsts!
To begin, our little cutie enjoyed her first bites of solid food. She’s been eating a small serving of rice cereal for the past week and gobbling up every bite. We are always amazed by how Dessa eats anything that’s served to her. We’ve made so many changes in her diet these past few months. It doesn’t matter if food is served from a breast or a bottle, what kind of formula we feed her, if the milk is warm or cold, is served with a little medicine mixed in, or even comes in a new style of bottle – Dessa eats it all without the slightest fuss!
Eating solid food was no different. She gobbled up every single bite and melted my mommy heart as she did! I cannot believe how big my sweet girl is getting.
bow // high chair // pajamas // milestone cards
After having a hearty service of rice cereal, we threw Dessa in the tub for a quick, splashy bath and got ready for another big first – her first trip to visit Santa. This event has been hanging over our heads for the past few weeks and despite a few previous attempts, we never quite succeed at putting our sweet girl in Santa’s lap. We finally made it to Bass Pro Shops to see their amazing free Santa and were so proud when our scared-around-strangers baby girl made it through the experience without shedding a single tear!
Can we just take a moment to gush over Dessa’s sweet little Christmas dress? It’s from Matilda Jane and I swooned when I saw it online, but dragged my feet about ordering one for Dessa and then they were sold out in her size! Luckily, a friend of mine is a Trunk Keeper and was somehow able to track one down for Dessa and surprised us with it right before Christmas. She looked so adorable and I loved that she was warm and comfortable in her new dress.
floral dress // red bow // striped tights
I just noticed that size 12-18 month dresses are still in stock and on sale for only $20. If you have a young baby girl, I highly recommend snatching the dress up now and packing it away for next Christmas. You won’t regret it! Dessa got so many compliments on her dress – thank you so much Jennifer!
Things weren’t all fun and games as Christmas approached. We were all eagerly awaiting the arrival of Dessa’s first tooth. After two long nights with a baby that would only sleep when held, we were overjoyed to see that Santa arrived early at the Gavin house and brought Dessa her very first tooth!
Christmas Eve proved to be an adventure in a few other ways.
Our Christmas Eve plans took an unexpected turn when we were hit with 5-7 inches of snow during my family’s Christmas celebration. We didn’t want to risk traveling on such snowy roads with the baby so we had to miss the Christmas celebration with Rob’s extended family and we settled in for an unplanned sleepover at my parents house.
The change of plans may have been inconvenient for us, but Dessa didn’t mind as long as we kept the snuggles coming and the formula flowing.
Rob and I didn’t not fare so well with the unexpected snow. Dessa wasn’t quite out of the teething woods yet and we were in for another long night with a baby who insisted on being held. We didn’t arrive prepared for a sleepover and had to borrow some PJs and claim a few spare toothbrushes that we found in the linen closet.
Then there was the fact that we went straight to church the following morning. I hope that’s the most disheveled we will ever arrive for any holiday Mass. Rob and I made quite a pair. He was unshaved, I wasn’t wearing one bit of makeup and we were both dressed in dirty clothes from the day before.
After attending the noon Christmas Mass, our little trio arrived home. I played with Dessa and put our presents away while Rob shoveled several inches of freshly fallen snow. We were overjoyed when we could finally change into pajamas, settle in for a cozy afternoon, and gather to open our family gifts!
Rob and I have slowly, but surely, been saving up for a house so we kept the Christmas budget small this year. We only spent about $100 on each other, bought Dessa a single gift and politely asked Santa to keep things simple this year. Santa brought Dessa bubbles, books and a small toy; but she really only cared about the paper.
As for the custom board book that I was so excited to give to Dessa…
Well, let’s just say she wasn’t impressed at the time. Poor baby girl was tired and mad that I took the wrapping paper away. We now read her book every day and she is captivated with the pictures while she drinks her bottle. I love that the book is filled with photos of the people who love her most. You can read more about the photo board book I created in this blog post.
Wondering what Rob and I got each other?
I bought Rob the European edition of Ticket to Ride. We already own the original version and it has been a huge hit when we get together with friends. I had read online that the Ticket to Ride: Europe has a few new rules, which makes it a little more complicated and a lot more fun. We haven’t had a chance to try out the game yet, but I read all of the new rules and we are both very excited to play it! I also bought Rob a gift card for Stitch Fix Men. I had planned to go shopping and purchase a few nice dress shirts, but my car was out of commission and I didn’t have a chance to go to the store. Thank goodness for Stitch Fix and their printable gift cards!
As for me, Rob made an unexpected purchase from our photographer gift guide. He bought me the Fujifilm Instax Mini 90 along with a few packs of film. This was a completely indulgent, not at all practical gift, but I don’t mind! We had fun shooting a few instant photos to commemorate our first Christmas as a family of three.
We feasted on baked mac & cheese for dinner, drank a little champagne, worked on a jigsaw puzzle and tucked ourselves in for an early bedtime. The rest of the time between Christmas and New Years just few by. We finally caught up with Rob’s family for a post-Christmas celebration and took a trip to unplug in Northern Michigan for a few days. It was around this time that we both came down with runny noses and a pretty epic cough (which, thankfully, Dessa seems to be immune to!)
Our holiday break is coming to a close. We spent New Year’s Eve dealing with persistent mechanical issues for my car, which highjacked our entire day. Yesterday we celebrated the New Year spent a glorious day at home together, working on our family budget, getting organized, and just enjoying one last day on our own terms.
As we prepared to say goodbye to 2017, it was super-fun to check out our top 9 posts on Instagram and see that you enjoy seeing photos of sweet Dessa just as much as we love sharing them! We truly are so honored to share our little corner of the internet with all of you. God bless and here’s to an amazing 2018!
So glad you guys didn’t attempt to go out driving on Christmas Day, I have a friend who is still in critical condition after being in a terrible accident on 696, Christmas Day. Late to celebrate Surely better than not to celebrate at all. Happy new year Gavin family!
Omg, these pictures just warmed my heart. Thank you for posting them, and happy new year for you too!