playing in the sun

Today we played outside for a little and took some cute pictures. Olivia is getting stronger and stronger! She is now 24 inches long and 12.5 lbs. She's also learning to smile for cameras which is great. She is def a little ham. Normally she screams in protest when on her tummy, but I started clapping and saying "Yaaaay Olivia!" And viola, she's happy as can be. Funny girl.

Sometimes...

Sometimes I don't sleep because I can't take my eyes off you. The way you fall asleep in the crook of my arm with a smile on your face is priceless. I know I am losing precious sleep watching you, but I know there will be a day that I'll need these memories of watching you sleep in my arms. I start to wonder about all the amazing things you're going to do some day, and I realize my imagination isn't big enough. Sometimes these moments are better than sleep.

Memorial Day Fun

So life has been busy since Sean has been home. We have been having lots of fun, espcially on Memorial Day. We started the day with a nice a breakfast at Crackers & Co., where I ran into one my cute students from Keller and found out he's going to regular ed for first grade next year! I am not too surprised, he is a very bright boy, and so cute. Anyway, then we looked at a house that needs work, but great layout, great neighborhood (Recker and McKellips) and a great price. However we were 1 of 3 offers. So we'll see. Then we went to the park to play with more family, and then we went to a car dealership for Sean and Becky to get a car, while Aaron and I went to the mall and I got a cute new swimsuit, and then we grilled burgers, and went in the hottub at Sean and Beckys, then had some ice cream, and then finally called it a day! And Olivia was a trooper through all that. She's an awesome baby. I was feeling guilty when it was 9:30 and she was sooo tired and we were still out. But she slept amazing that night! And all day yesterday too. In other news...

I have lost 3lbs since getting our WiiFit! I absolutely love this thing. It's like having a trainer in your house... kinda. I get into the game part of it, trying to beat my last score, wanting to rack up WiiFit credits (minutes working out) to unlock new exercises, etc. But I love being able to see my progress in a graph, and I also love how the balance board works, and the game tells me I am shakey, or favoring my left side and to try to stay steady and balance using core muscles and all that stuff. Yoga poses that I never really felt a stretch or a burn before I am feeling now because I'm actually doing it right. It's really a lot of fun. Plus I'm running outside too, prepping for the 5K coming up in June. I still have a ways to go to get to my ideal weight, but I am having fun getting there.

And of course some pictures...

Sometimes Olivia is so happy it takes over her entire face.

And other times she's just really sad that she has to be in her carseat, again.

And sometimes I clean the kitchen one spoon at a time.

Routines...

So we're getting onto somewhat of a routine around here! However, Olivia is now not sleeping as good at night. She's still sleeping at night, but I'm not sure if things are better or worse. However we'll continue with how things are going and I'm sure it will get better. I think now is more normal for her age anyways. Typical day looks like this:

7:30ish - wake up, eat, get dressed, play a little
8:45 - Nap time
10:45 - Wake up, eat, play, go for a walk etc.
1:00 - Nap time
3:30 - Wake up, eat, play, etc.
5:00 - 45 minute catnap
5:45 - eat
7:00ish - eat
8:00 - bath, get ready for bed,
8:30ish - eat
11:00 - "dream" eat
3:30 - kinda wakes up and eats

Welcome Home!

Feel good story of the day...

Aaron's best friend, and cousin has been in Iraq for the past year. He got married May 15th, 2007 and reported to New Jersey on May 27th. He and his bride were reunited on their ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY May 15th, 2008. Sgt. Sean Stoddard and all the soldiers he was deployed with all made it home safely. Our whole family has tried very hard to have someone from the family in the temple every Sean was gone. It's so good to see an answer to prayers. And getting to be reunited on their one year anniversary is just extra blessings. So happy to have our friend back!! And I am so grateful for these young men and their service.

And for the update with words....

Well we had Olivia's baby blessing on Sunday. It was beautiful and she was an angel. Afterwards we went to Grandpa Opie's for cheese and nachos, and my beautiful cake:

Thank you very much to my friend Sarah for letting me borrow her stuff. I had so much fun making the biggest mess in my kitchen, and this cute little cake. Anyway, it was great to see family and celebrate our beautiful little girl.

Olivia also went in the pool for the first time. I'm not sure if I already blogged this or not, so I will tell you again... Last Thursday we got O all ready for the pool with a little swimmer diaper that was entirely too big, lots of sunscreen, and her cute little bikini top (which may be inappropriate for an infant, but figured it was more modest than the nakie alternative). We got in the water and she was calm and serene as could be. She just loved it. By the time I got done taking pictures and finally got in the water myself, it started to rain! So we quickly got out and got into the house. But it was fun while it lasted. I'm glad she loves the water.

In other news, I decided to run a 5K in Flagstaff in June. This is in preperation for a Sprint Triathlon to take place possibly in October. I really want to get back into shape and this is the most fun way I have found to push myself. That and purchasing a WiiFit first thing tomorrow.

Well that's about all the going's on around here lately. The schedule thing is coming along. Thank you for your book recomendations. Right now I think O is having a major growth spurt because she has been eating every two hours like clock work, and taking more naps during the day and still sleeping like a champ at night. Oh and she giggled for the first time on Friday. She only did it once, and despite trying as hard as I can I haven't been able to get her to do it again.

Oh... and I had my piano recital last night. Yes, I barely started piano lessons about a year and a half ago, but I have learned so much in this past year. I played the Winnie the Pooh theme song. I have to laugh at my recitals because my teacher teaches a large range of students, the youngest about 5 and then there's me, 23. I think the 5 year old played a more complex peice than I did. And I messed up 3 times. I always get so nervous. I feel like everyone in the room is like, "Oh an older person, she's probably going to play something she composed herself... or something really hard." And then I pound out and stumble on "Winnie the Pooh". Ohhh good times.

And I think that's it for real, this time.

"The Joy of Motherhood is found in the moments"

me too

nothin like a big stretch

First swim!

just bein cute

priceless

like these...

Naps!

Olivia does not sleep well during the day. Some days are great and others are horrible. Today falls into the horrible category. So far she has had two twenty minute naps and that's about all. Yesterday she had one good nap that lasted almost 3 hours, plus her additional cat naps here and there. She is much happier when she sleeps more during the day, but I'm not sure what I'm doing differently today compared to yesterday.

My other worry now is if I should be trying to get Olivia on a schedule during the day. So far I've been pretty much on demand... she's eating her hands and fussing I know she's hungry, she's crying and rubbing her eyes I know she's tired, and I change her diaper with just about every feeding. No rhyme or reason to this schedule whatsoever. Any input? When was your baby on a schedule? There's so much research each and every way, I have no clue. I know each baby is different, and I'm trying to trust my mommy instincts. But I worry. That's what I do.

Happy Birthday Mom

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Today is my mom's birthday. In honor of her I will list five great things about my mom.

1 - She always thinks of her kids first, no matter what.
2 - Went out and got a job to help send her kids to college.
3 - Even though her kids make some decisions she doesn't understand, she supports them in the end.
4 - She loves her kids more than anything, and we all know it!
5 - She's not only a great mom, but a great friend.

Love you mom. Happy Birthday.

Two months already!

My dear little Olivia,

Two months have gone by, and you have changed my world more than you will ever know (at least not until you have a baby of your own someday). Every thought and dream now includes you. You are really a very good baby. You sleep at night. You don't usually fuss unless you're tired. You're not a schedule, but we're working on it. Your smile is amazing. You really like music. In the past two months you have traveled 3,000 miles to New Jersey and 3,000 miles back. You've been to the cabin in Christopher Creek twice, you've gone to Tuscon, and to Phoenix for your first D-Back's game, and you're only 9 weeks old. You've had two colds. You've never been away from me for more than 2.5 hours. You hate being on your tummy, unless it's to sleep (which I know is wrong, but sometimes we let you do it anyway). You love your daddy so much. He likes to hold you while he plays video games, but I take you away when he plays games like Resident Evil because I think watching it gives you bad dreams. I can't wait to see what the next month brings, and the next and the next...

Love,
MommyHere you are, absolutely done trying on blessing dresses. You can't sit up on your own yet, but this dress was poofy enough to hold you up!

Here you are getting ready to go to your first baseball game.

And here you are on your two month birthday with your cousins. The look you are giving me is priceless.

Memories

I haven't had much time to update lately. Still don't really. I will have to add pictures later. Just a quick list of what we've been up to.

Olivia's first Major League Baseball game. So fun. She was an angel.

Helping Douger move from Tuscon back to Mesa. Not so fun. She was a devil... well that's a little harsh but she's got herself a little cold, and wasn't happy to be in the car.

Mother's Day. Aaron made me breakfast. Chocolate chip waffles with strawberries and whip cream. Yummy.

House hunting continues.

And housework at home never ends :)

Happy Mother's Day everyone!

Seriously.

How great is my life?

When I get to see these faces every day?

Seriously.

Glad I didn't have to endure this...

So msn.com did an article about the top ten mothers of the animal kingdom. I found it really interesting... did you know the female octopus lays 50,000 eggs, and then watches over them so diligently she doesn't take time to even go find food for herself... and to keep from starving she eats one of her own arms! But most interesting was their 1., the Sea Louse:
Sure, she may be just a small aquatic crustacean, but the female sea louse is No. 1 on our list and here's why. First, she's lured by the male into his bachelor burrow for mating where -- surprise! -- she discovers that she's actually in a harem with 25 other pregnant females! If that wasn't bad enough, once the babies are ready to be born, they make their way into the world by eating her from the inside out. Worst. Childbirth. Ever.



Makes an epiosotomy sound like a pinic.. well maybe that's a poor choice of words.

4:30am...

So this is usually what time Olivia wakes up... but tonight she woke up at 2:30. I fed her, she fell back to sleep pretty quickly... but I can't! So I decided to bake cinnamon rolls at 4:00am. Now they're almost done but I'm afraid I'll fall asleep before the timer goes off... so I blog.

We looked at a house today, well tonight really. Let me tell you, looking at bank owned property after dark is scary. Extremely. This particular house probably would have been scary in daylight. It said vacant on the listing so our realtor (Aaron's cousin) took us. Flashlights in hand (the kind you have to shake to get the battery charged, because that's all Ammon could find) we left at 8:00pm. We pull up and the exterior of this house is charming. Citrus trees, roses bushes, and a little front porch. Backyard is a nice size, with a nice fenced in pool. We try to get in, but Shawn's (realtor) ekey realtor thing is expired, since it's already so late they switched the numbers for the next day or something. Meanwhile he has his wife and two kids with him who are 3, and 5 months. They are not happy. It's late. I feel bad. So then we finally do get inside and it's scary. First thing to hit me is the smell. Pee. Gross. And it looks like it's still sort of, kind of occupied. Sean calls out, "Hello?" and my heart is seroiusly racing. There's just junk every where. Like a single high heeled shoe on the kitchen counter. Old quilts and bedspreads. Garbage. Pots and pans. I try to see the potential. Nice tile floors. Reccently painted... but painted over some weird bamboo wallpaper. Nice kitchen. Marble tile countertops. Interesting. Then there's the bedrooms. One is hot pink with writing with marker on the walls. Teenager's room I'm sure. Then there's two more. One smells so horrific I don't even go inside. One is filled with bedspreads. Then there's the master. It's a good size. The bathroom is small. I don't think there's a walk in closet. And then there's a huge cockroach in the bathroom. This is what freaks me out the most. I am ready to leave. Meanwhile Aaron is falling in love with this house. Yes, you read correctly. The smell, the creepy-ness, the roaches... don't seem to mind. It's a good price, in a good neighborhood and somehow feels right to Aaron. We agree to go back in daylight. Maybe then I can see what Aaron sees.