Tired.

Olivia was doing super in her bed... until about 4 days ago.

About the same time Abigail started SLEEPING ALL NIGHT. And I don't just mean 4-5 hours, I mean like, 9 or 10pm - 6am, or even yesterday until 7am!

Imagine the sleep I'd be getting if it wasn't for Olivia. She's now back to wanting to be held until she falls asleep. Then if she wakes up in the middle of the night, instead of just softly whining in her bed like she did the first week, she's out of her bed and in our room. Fortunately the past two nights she only did this once, and I took her back in her room, laid her in her bed and pat her back until she was back to sleep. And this only took 3, or 4 minutes both times. So guess that's okay, but still interupted my sleep. Last night was a doosey. I didn't get to bed until midnight. Olivia was in our room crying at 1am. Got her and myself back to sleep by 1:30. Then she was up again at 5:00. I tried to get her back to sleep. Even took her in our bed and hoped she'd fall asleep. NOPE. So here I am at 6:44am blogging about it. She's miserable. Blah. I guess I should be grateful at least I'm not getting up for feedings between Olivia wakings, but all I can think is the sleep I'm missing. Do you have any idea how long it's been since I've gotten 6 uninterrupted hours of sleep? I know what I'd like for Christmas. S-l-e-e-p.

So making this costume, and wrapping 3 presents took me 3 hours. THREE HOURS. It involved tears all around and several time outs. All to cut a three holes in a pillow case, glue some garland, and some "wings". But we made it to the Opie nativity in one peice.

Santa was an entire 45 minutes late. This picture was taken at almost 9:00. For Olivia "Santa" is synonymous with "candy". When he did arrive she was dancing around saying, "Yay Santa! Candy! Yay Santa, Candy!" And although it's clear she's really uncomfortable and shy and nervous, she'll endure anything for refined sugar and corn syrup in colorful wrappers.

Feeling Blessed.

So I don't feel like uploading any pictures right now. I'll do that tomorrow. Maybe. But as Abigail is fussing in my lap I thought I'd take a minute and write what's in my heart. It just seems all around us people are struggling and sometimes I feel guilty we are SO blessed. Our kids will have a merry Christmas this year. We have family around us. We are going to be able to spend two weeks with family in NJ! Aaron and I are planning a trip to NYC. I want to see a show and eat dinner at this Italian resturant that we can never remember the name of or the exact location, but somehow wandering around we were able to find it twice! Anyway, I was just looking forward to that and realizing how lucky we are. Even little things like Olivia is in a toddler bed now, and has been for a week. And so far she hasn't tried to get out once! We put her to bed and she actually stays put. I was so sure she wouldn't, I made Aaron turn the door knob around because I was sure we'd have to lock her in so we could sleep. So far the only thing is she is waking up earlier and coming into my room and waking me up at 6. Often, I have just barely fallen back to sleep after feeding Abigail. Oh well, lack of sleep is worth it, most of the time. I love seeing how much Olivia is growing. She played so well with her cousins tonight. She's talking in little sentances. She's listening. She's helpful. Lately she's been cracking us up by singing "Ducktales woowoo!"
Abigail is growing. And smiling. And cooing. And sleeping. All I could ask for.
Aaron finished his application for pharmacy school. So now we wait. I think in 6 weeks or so we should get called for an interview. Then I think they said it was like 4 weeks from there to find out if he's accepted or not. If he gets in, he will start in June. I don't doubt that he'll get accepted.
As I think about these blessings my heart really is full with love for my Heavenly Father. I know all good things come from Him. I know it's because of our faithfulness that we have been so blessed. I am grateful to be married to a man that shares my beliefs. I love that Olivia says her own little prayers now. And if we forget to pray before a meal, or bed she will remind us. Makes me feel like I'm doing something right. Anyway, Abbi is asleep now, so I should be too. Goodnight!

Unrequited Love

Okay first this picture... Olivia asked to hold Abigail. Then she pulled down her shirt and said, "Eat baby? Baby eat?" And I cracked up realizing she was trying to nurse Olivia. What a crack up, I tell ya.

Now here... I'm convinced Abigail is going to wind up with brain damage, at the expense of me trying to get a good picture of these two together. Here Olivia was putting daddy's tie on Abigail's head and saying, "Pretty! Pretty!"
And this face pretty much sums it up.

I don't know about you but this is the most hilarious post ever, if you ask me.

We are blessing Abigail Sunday. Busy day tomorrow. Hopefully I will get some sleep tonight.

One month old.

One of many many kisses Abigail gets when she's trying to sunbathe in her swing.

Do you see how long this girl is??

This face is priceless.

Abigail is one month old today. And she's already the big cousin! My sister-in-law had a baby boy this morning. Exactly one month apart! It will be fun to see pictures of them together. He weighed almost the same as Abigail, at 9lb 8oz.

So here are some current stats on Abigail. She's already over 12 lbs!! I'm not sure how long she is, but I'm sure she's grown length wise too because her clothes are not fitting her already! She's still a little jaundiced so we're working on getting her in the sun more. Hopefully that will be enough to clear it up. She's doing alright sleeping. She still sleeps much of the day. But she's sleeping pretty good at night too. Aaron has been a great help, so I always get at least 4 straight hours. Only a mom can consider 4 straight hours a good nights sleep! I always get a little more after that, but at least 4 hours consolidated is sooo nice. :) We have a bit of a routine but right now Abigail is so portable her naps are usually on the go. I know this stage doesn't last long so we're making the most of it by getting shopping done and all that.

Olivia loves her sister so much. She's pretty naughty sometimes, but when she gives Abigail kisses and hugs and is concerned when she cries, its just so heart warming for me! We're still working on being soft, and what's okay and what's not with touching Abigail. But for the most part she's really doing awesome.

We all have colds right now. Olivia seems to be getting over it. Abigail just sounds the tiniest bit congested. Nothing like Olivia was when she was a newborn! And my throats a little scratchy, but nothing too bad. Aaron is being a tough guy, so he must not be that sick ;) jk I think he is feeling a little crappy too. It's that time of year I guess.

Thanksgiving

We watched daddy play football.

He scored a touch down. But we think he really scored in the family department. :) I mean look at these beautiful girls, and then of course there's me.

Then we spent some time with friends and family. This picture really doesn't do a good job of showing it, but these two are 2 weeks apart, but look more like 2 months! It will be so fun to watch them grow up together.

And didn't get it pictured, but we baked pies, ate turkey and all that yummy stuff, took naps, and attempted some shopping today. Love this time of year.

My helper

So I just feel the need to brag on my little 20 month old for a quick minute. She has been fabulous since her sister has come home. She LOVES to help. If she's in the middle of throwing a fit for whatever reason, most of the time if I ask her to do something the fit stops and she instantly says, "Okay mommy!" And does what I ask. Of course this is most of the time, but I love it. She throws away diapers, fetches diapers, helps put lotion on Abbi after a bath, puts laundy in the hamper, etc. Today I dropped something on the floor and she ran to get it for me and picked it up and put it in the sink. Then when flour spilled she went and got the broom and started trying to sweep it up. It's so sweet! We are baking cookies for the office's patient appriciation day tomorrow, and Olivia was my big helper. She loved holding the hand mixer, and sang a song, "mix mix mix mix". That's her other thing. She loves to sing to her sister. She sings so softly, and usually no words are decipherable besides, "rock baby, rockababy, rock baby...". SO CUTE! She will also run over and give Abbi a kiss on the top of her head out of no where. Anyway right now is a rare moment when Abbi is asleep, and Olivia is playing with friends (THANKS JILL!) so I need to make the most of it by getting on top of some of the cleaning around here. What is it about weekends that the house goes to complete pot?

For the grandparents

Chilly sunday morning

So we have the heat on. I figure this is blog worthy since I was starting to think that this day would never come. After so many months of 90+ tempatures it is nice to feel a little chilly. I wish I had some hot chocolate!

We are cuddling under blankets and watching DVD's. Olivia has a cold. So far no one else has caught it. Crossing my fingers that it stays that way.

Abigail is a noisey baby. She cooes, grunts, occassionally screams, and is rarely silent. Even in her sleep. She grunts more than anything else. I have no idea what it means. Like if she did every time before she pooped it would make sense to me... but she just does it all the time. Leaving me with little sleep. The thing, she's not even waking up, just making these grunting sounds. I'm thinking I might put her in a different room... but we'll see. Right now she's right next to my bed, so when she is hungry all I have to do is roll over, latch her on, and we both usually fall back to sleep. Then when I wake up I stick her back in her bassinet. This would work if she wasn't so loud. Then this morning around 4:45 she was wide awake and wanting to be held. She didn't fall back to sleep until 7:30... guess what time Olivia woke up. 7:30. So I'm tired.

But we are enjoying this chilly morning. Makes me feel like the holidays are really here.

Abigail Rose

So we made it through week one.. half way through week 2. Today Olivia woke up with a little fever and runny nose. Hoping and hoping it's teething related, espcially since we have barely left the house since Abby (Abbi?) has been born so I have no clue how she could have caught anything. Abigail has been doing wonderful. She sleeps great, eats great, poops tons, couldn't ask for more from a newborn! Right now her biggest stretch of sleep seems to be from around 11 until 4 or 5. I wake her up to feed her around 3, but she hardly wakes up. These are just some of the faces I love. This was when the photographer in the hospital was torturing her.

It's hard to catch on camera, but she smiles lots in her sleep. I love watching babies sleep.

So we're all alive and doing well. I am adjusting much better than I thought I would to having two kids on my own... well with Aaron's help of course. And granted, this is my first full day on my own! Had my mom and dad here for a couple weeks and it was lovely!

The long story.

Abigail..(haven't decided on a middle name..) Opie. 9lbs 5 oz.

Well I don't really feel like typing out the entire story right now so we'll see where this goes. Friday night I was having pretty bad contractions. I thought for sure I was in labor. I tried to wait as long as possible to wake up Aaron. Woke him at 5am, and the contractions started to ease up. In fact by 1:00 I'd say they were entirely gone. They were kind of intermitten throughout the day. After trick-or-treating and other halloween festivities I was having contractions again. They felt the same as the ones that morning so I was sure they'd stop. I took a tylenol and tried to sleep. I wasn't going to time the contractions because really I was sure it was going to stop again. But then they were getting pretty uncomfortable... I really didn't think it was real labor, but thought if we went to the hospital at least I could get an epidural and sleep until "active labor" kicked in. But then I realized the contractions were 1-2 minutes apart. We got to the hospital and I was feeling an urge to push. My water broke just outside the door of the hospital. Of course in admitting they wanted me to do all this paperwork and whatnot, and I was trying not to freak out on the poor lady. When the nurse was finally able to check me the baby was crowning and they rushed me into delivery room. The doctor was barely able to make it in time. From the moment I got there I was asking for my epidural. I had no desire for a natural childbirth whatsoever. In fact in the car I told Aaron, they say to think about your baby and stuff to get through the contractions, but all I could think about was getting an epidural! I was so scared of pushing her out. When the dr got there and I could push, I didn't want to, I was so afraid. But they said just do one little push and if I can't do it they'll get me something. Well one push and she was out. I didn't believe it. I was saying I couldn't do it again, and everyone was like, "You did it. She's out!" CRAZY. For the next few hours all I could say was that I couldn't believe I had a baby like that.. I couldn't believe I was in labor all that time at home. I couldn't believe I actually pushed her out in one push. It's all still surreal.

She's been great so far. Eats well. Sleeps well. Poops lots. The only horrible thing is that Olivia is not allowed to visit in the hospital. I was not mentally prepared for this seperation at all. We had no idea siblings weren't allowed. My dad brought her, and I was so excited for her to meet her sister... and cried my eyes out when they told me she couldn't come in. And I have to stay in the hospital for 48 hours because I was group B+. Blah. I miss this face. (By the way this is what she does now when she's in trouble. She thinks no one can see her.)

I lost it today.

So lots of fun-ness going on over here... none of it involving the birth of this child... but fun nonetheless. My dad flew out last Sunday and we have been keeping him very busy. It's been so nice to have a full time playmate for Olivia. And all these projects are finally getting a done, a year after moving into this house! So really, I don't have much to complain about... except for the fact that I'm still pregnant. Which makes everything seem 1,000x worse.

Like the fact that our car needed a new fuel pump yesterday.

And the other car needed 4 new tires today.

And I'm still pregnant.

And Olivia pooped her pants this morning and it was SO nasty.

Did I mention I'm STILL pregnant?

And I get these cramps that are annoying... but not really quite labor-ish. I know it's soon, and impending, and will be here... but I'm losing my patience.

I ran into a friend at the Dr. today and when she asked when I was due I began to cry and sobbed, "I was due on Monday!" And I think I cried the rest of my doctor appointment.

Dr. Huish said we could induce, but there's not a real medical reason to. Baby is fine, I am fine.. relatively... so I'm trying to trust that my body knows what its doing. It's just frustrating to still be pregnant. I really never thought I'd still be pregnant on Halloween! I thought for sure I'd be out trick-or-treating with Olivia while my mom stayed home with new baby handing out candy or something.

Oh well.. good news is that I am 100% effaced and almost 4 cm dialated. So really... what is she waiting for!!

Pre-Halloween fun

So first let me get this much out of the way... I'm still pregnant. Due date is tomorrow. I really, really, really thought this baby would be here by now. Ohhh well... I probably should have done a fun halloween costume for the Opie Family Halloween party. But I didn't put much thought into because I really thought she'd be here! Anyway, my dad is here now to help out! I'm excited for that. We have been keeping busy. The pictures are of Olivia's cute ladybug costume that I made :) And her love of goats. We went to Schnepp's farm for my birthday last weekend and it was so fun. She also rode a pony. I have a bunch of pictures I should put up, but I'm too tired right now! Hopefully a post in the near future will be about our newest addition!

This face.

For some reason whenever Olivia does something she knows, or thinks is funny, she makes this face. She'll put something on her head, and look at me like this, and I crack up. I can't even put it into words. Just this yup, I'm hilarious face.

Enjoy.

Flashing back to almost 19 months ago...

So guess what... I have a cold. A stuff nose, sore throat, probably going to turn into a hacking cough.

Remember right before I went into labor with Olivia I had the same stinking cold! I had a fever, and was up all night unable to breathe through my nose... and at 5am contractions started.

As much as I want to not be pregnant anymore, I hope this little girl waits until I'm better to make her entrance.

And honestly, how many babies are born at 37 weeks anyway? They say it's full term and all... but I am sure I'll go to my due date, and then some.

But really I'm not so sure. I hate these last 3 (4??) weeks. Just thinking every day... could I have a baby today?? Was that pain a contraction? And constantly going through my head exactly what I think I'm going to do when I do go into labor. How long am I going to wait before getting the epidural. I like to think I'm going to do what they say and go about my normal day as much as possible. Call my mom of course and let her know. But I won't freak out. I'll keep playing with Olivia, and clean my house. My mom will get here then I'll be in a lot of pain, and ready to go to the hospital. I'll be like 9 cm dialated by the time I get there. Push her out in like 2 pushes. I won't tear. She'll be perfect in every way. Yeah, that's how it's going to go...or something like that.

And this is what's keeping me awake at 11:40pm, when all I've wanted to do all day is sleep.

Adventures at the zoo

So I don't have any pictures to add, but a funny story anyway.

This month the Phoenix Zoo is free on Weds with your Fry's VIP card (that's the grocery store out here..). So all month I have been thinking we would go, but each week it has been hot and I just don't feel like going. Well this morning Olivia woke up earlier than usual and I thought it'd be fun since it was so early it wouldn't be too hot. Wrong! It was so muggy and humid today too. Anyway, I didn't pack the good stroller, just our umbrella one... that was my first mistake. There is some rough terrain at that zoo. And I forgot water bottles. Olivia had some milk in a sippy cup, but I had nothing. The zoo was being torn up for a water main thing... the signs were all kind of screwy because they were digging up some of the paths. I just wanted to find the petting zoo since that seemed like the most fun. I got lost so many times trying to find the stinking petting zoo! And it wasn't even along a path where we could see anything interesting. Mostly construction stuff. In fact at one point I unknowingly entered a construction zone, and I swear I walked a mile before someone stopped me and told me this path didn't lead anywhere and should have been roped off. So I turn back around and finally ask someone to point me in the direction of the stinkin petting zoo. By the time we find it I am seriously soaked in sweat and soooo thirsty. There's a drinking fountain, great! I go to get a drink, and nothing comes out. Working on that water main remember. So whatever, I'll pay $10 for a bottle of water at this point I don't care. I find a vending machine... OUT OF ORDER! I find a little stand... CLOSED. Ugh. Okay I'll suffer, and let Olivia go play with the goats. She had a great time chasing them and petting them and brushing them. And then one of the goats was pooping, and what can be more fascinating than that? Olivia was like, "Oh no! No no! No no!" trying to tell the goat to go on the potty not on the floor. Then she got a little too close and the goat peed on her foot. And all she kept saying the rest of the time was pee! And I so I want to wash her foot off... but of course there's no water. So I decide at that point we've had enough of the zoo and we'd go home and get some water. Of course trying to find the exit is just as difficult as trying to find the petting zoo in the first place. We get lost again a few times. It's even hotter, and I'm even sweatier. But eventually we made it home. And we saw monkeys and birds and ducks along the way.

All that was before 9am.

Olivia is still talking about the pee.

I'm drinking gallons of water.

Just a genral update

So here's what's going on in our little world.

Aaron is back in school full time. And working full time. He's taking 16 credits, working about 40 hours a week, and preparing to take the PCAT in less than a month. Yeah he's amazing. All this in preperation to apply to pharmacy school in January to start in June. He is so smart, and is doing wonderfully in his classes. We are proud of him. The program he is applying to is a 3 year, accelerated program in Glendale. They have about 3,000 applicants a year and accept about 150 into their program. Our only worry is that Aaron has about... zero pharmacy experience. We need to work on that. Anyone know any pharmacists that need a volunteer helper?

A weird sickness ran through our family earlier this week. I got really tired. More than normal pregnancy tired. And then I started feeling really queasy. Then I barfed. A lot. Then I slept a couple hours and woke up feeling almost normal. Never got a fever. My sister-in-law apparently had the same thing at the same time. Aaron kind of got it, but never puked. So now I'm keeping everything crossed that this somehow magically skips Olivia. I am pretty sure it was a bug and not just something we ate because really we didn't eat anything in the 48 hours prior to this sickness that would make you sick. Like really... cheerios, cheese crisps, bread... I can't think of anything that could have possibly been bad. Anyway, it's over for me and Aaron, and just hoping it passes O.

Olivia is her cute self. Her biggest thing right now is wanting to know everyone's whereabouts. I hear, "Daddy go?" about 15 times a day. And nana, and papa, and everyone else she knows. She can count to 2, and understands the concept of 2 very well. Anytime she has one of something, she usually says, "Two peease mama?" And how cute is that, I usually give in and let her have 2 of whatever it is. She's into cats right now, and calls them all "tashi" bc that's my mom's cat, and the first cat she ever really met. She also loves ring around the rosie right now. She will play by herself if no one will join her. Which is also really cute. She just says, "ashses ahses ashses ashes... JUMP" while spinning in a circle, then falls down. It cracks me up. We talk about the baby coming to our family a lot. I know she doesn't really get it, but it's still heart warming to have her talk to my belly, and kiss it and hug it (usually followed by an "awwwe" from her). She's also offically in Nursery now. That's the Sunday school class for 18 month old - 3 year olds at our church. Last week she did pretty good, but they were short 4 teachers, so I stayed in to help for the second hour. She's way into this whole "MINE" phase. I swear I hear her saying it in her sleep. She says it to her own reflection. She says it to strangers we pass in the aisle of the grocery store (usually while clinging to whatevers closest to her). She even says it to no one at all, but while looking sternly in a direction like there's someone there. I really don't know what to do. I try to tell her to say please, or Olivia's instead. She will do it after I correct her, but never at first. Which hearing her say her name is hilarious. She is "yaya". And when she hides she says, "yaya go? yaaaayaaa?" So she does have a new nickname around here, yaya.

As far as the weather here in AZ... still hot. And it really bugs me when it's the middle of Sept and still over 100. I can deal with it in August, but by Sept. I want cool weather. I guess that's the jersey in me. Labor day weekend = end of summer. Not here. We still have a while left, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, gorgeous weather is around the corner. And in the morning and evenings it's not too bad. We have spent quite a bit of time outside.

And I'm 34 weeks. Well almost 35. This is the time I start thinking... in 2 weeks I'm full term! But in reality I am sure I have at least 5 weeks left. I feel like she's going to come early, but that's probably just wishful thinking. I wish I stayed in better shape this pregnancy. I was so good with Olivia. Not so much this time, and I am feeling it. I feel like I can barely move sometimes. Like I'm underwater. Like everything requires 10 times more effort. But I do love watching my belly move around. I love feeling her. I am trying to enjoy it.

Official...

So this will have to be my last post about potty training, as I'm sure everyone's done hearing about and I'm pretty much done talking about it. But I think we are officially there. Today we went out to a Karate studio promotion thing where there was lots of fun and playing and running around, we were there for a little over an hour, then we went to Basha's, and she stayed dry the entire time! Then after her nap we went to the museum for 2 hours, and to Goodwill for a few minutes, and again stayed dry. She even peed at the museum on the potty twice! So I'm sure we'll still have accidents... so far today we are accident free and it's 5:10!

*UPDATE @ 5:15 - Olivia peed her pants while I was typing this. LOL, I thought I heard her say pee, but then hoped it was bee because I didn't feel like getting up. Guess I can only blame myself on that one. LOL

18 months old!... and 33 weeks.

Not much to report pregnancy wise. For some reason my hips have been hurting every time I stand up... not sure about that.

Olivia's had a couple cranky days. I just run out of ways to entertain her by the afternoon. Our mornings we go out somewhere... anywhere. Some days its Petco to see the kitens the fish. Other times it's just grocery shopping all over creation to find the best deals. Today will probably be the library. But then in the afternoon it's just too hot to get into the hot car again so we try to stay in, and by 6:00 Olivia is going nuts. Can't wait for the cooler weather to get here! But good news, she's pretty much potty trained. She just about always tells us when she has to go. I've been even leaving her in underwear when we venture out in the mornings. I was putting her in a diaper sometimes, and if she told me she had to pee it was easier to just kind of ignore her or tell her it's okay... so I felt like I was DE-potty training her, which of course no one wants to do, LOL.

She is 18 months today. What could I say about Olivia? She's extremely strong willed, and throws fits that make me worry about when she's 18 years old! Otter pops are def the favorite treat around here. She uses some little sentences. She does the motions for songs like itsy bitsy spider, and wheels on the bus, popcorn popping, etc. She really loves listening to pirates, the Yoho song whenever we're in the car. I pretty much think she's the smartest, cutest little girl in this world... even when she's trying my patience. :)

Week 32 and more potty training update

So I'm starting to get really uncomfortable! I feel like this baby is so low, but at the same time she's in my ribs. I can't really get comfy no matter how I sit, or lay, or stand etc. And only 8 weeks left... lol. But I really do enjoy being pregnant. It's just such a miracle. Knowing there's really a little baby growing in there. And I keep reminding myself, she's a lot easier to take care of when she's in there.

Potty training has been getting a lot a better. Just for my own here's a run down of today, which was a pretty typical day.

7 - wake up, she was already poopy. But peed on the potty
8:30ish - first accident, should have put her on the potty again before getting her dressed.
9-10:30 went out, and she stayed dry the entire time. Put her in a diaper for nap.
11:30-12:30 nap, woke up poopy again.
1:00 - another accident, again I probably should have put her on the potty before getting her dressed. I'll learn someday lol.
2:30 - Peed on the potty!
4:00 - Told me, "peepee mama!" and we made it to the potty in time!
5:00 - Again, "peepee mama!" and again we made it!
7:00 - Getting ready for bed, peed on the potty again!

She does poop on the potty, but I think she def prefers to do that in the diaper, considering both times she had a diaper on today she pooped in it. But she's pooped on the potty more times than I can count, so I know she will, just a matter of timing. So we've done okay going out. If it's going to be long, I just put her in a diaper. Tomorrow I am going to work and Aaron's mom is going to watch her, and I think I'll just put her in a diaper because I don't expect anyone else to go through what I do! Then when I get home I'll put her back in undies. I know it seems crazy potty training my almost 18 month old, but I think I'll be glad I did it. She's a lot less stubborn now than she'll be next year. There's no power struggle this way. She loves to make me happy. No stickers, candies, or rewards. Just praise, modeling, and cleaning up lots of accidents, and lots of laundry. I also keep thinking of how much money I'm saving us, if she's only using diapers to sleep by the time this baby is born.

31 weeks.

So I'm 31 weeks and feel really... waddle-ish. I just feel so awkward moving about. And of ourse Olivia has reccently found a love for Ring Around the Rosie. Every time we "all fall down" she jumps right back up asking for "more more more" and I feel like I'm getting a huge workout just getting up and down over and over again.

We've been more serious about potty-training since we've been home from NJ. Olivia was in big girl pants almost all day today. Even a trip grocery shopping that lasted over an hour. She stayed dry all day. It's still a matter of me taking her to the potty every hour or so, but once today she told me peepee, and we actually made it to the potty in time! Normally if she says pee, I have literally 1 second before theres pee everywhere. The hardest part is going out, and knowing we'll be gone for a while. Like, today I had to go buy Aaron some books at MCC's bookstore, and I really didn't want to deal with an accident in a college bookstore, so I put a diaper on her... which I also didn't want to do because I know I need to be consistent. And of course she told me she had to pee when we were there and I had to be like, just pee in your diaper, it's okay. How confusing is that for her??

Anyway, Olivia has had a cold, and been trying to get back on schedule from NJ. She's finally sleeping better, but her nose is still running.

Home.

So our trip to NJ was wonderful. I actually extended my stay another week, and had to say goodbye to Aaron after 10 great days together. Then I spent the next week with Olivia and my family. Mostly it was just great enjoying delicious food, time with family, beach, boardwalk, etc. Some highlights were deep sea fishing on a boat. We caught 3 fish each, but none were keepers. We spent one day down in LBI and just enjoyed all day on the beach. The waves were pretty good and Olivia was so not into it. She did enjoy the sand though. One night my parents took me and O to Point Pleasant which is another boardwalk on the beach. She loved the rides. It was crazy to see my baby on those rides, looking all like a big girl. She even went on a huge roller coaster with her Pop-pop. Point Pleasant also has an aquarium which was so much fun. O was running around screaming and yelling "FISH!". It was fun.

Now we are home, trying to adjust to the time difference. Olivia is still waking up at 5am. Which would be great if we were in NJ... but we're not, and 5 is way too early! I came home to lots of projects done, thanks to my hubby! He painted the girls room, and moved the furniture and it's just perfect. He also finished painting the wall in the living room that I started 10 months ago. So now I really should be cleaning because yesterday I pretty much vegged all day.

Also, a quick update just for myself about Olivia. These past three weeks have been crazy to see her vocab grow. I can't even count how many words she knows now. She uses 2-3 words together in little phrases, such as "daddy go?" and "byebye daddy" and of course the popular "MINE! Myyyy baby (or whatever item it is)." We are still working on her little violent habit of face pinching when she doesn't want to be held. She likes to be on her own, and if that's interrupted she claws your face off. It's terrible, and she had stopped it for a long time, but started again in NJ. This week I'm also starting to get serious about potty training. I really don't want 2 in diapers, so I have about 2 and a half months to get this girl out of diapers. She goes on the potty, and will usually tell me when she has to pee, but not when she has to poop. But if I time it right, she will poop on the potty, just doesn't tell me that she has to. So I think we're about half way there.

NYC

So here are some quick highlights of our NYC trip.

Rooftop by the sea ports. So nice. After hours of walking it was heavenly to sit and enjoy the view.

This cracks me up. Lawn chairs in Time Square. I heard about this, but it was still funny to see.

And my latest belly shot, 28 weeks in Times Square.

Other highlights, not pictured:

• Entering a Mario Kart contest at Nintendo World
• Yummiest pizza ever
• Yummiest cheesecake ever
• Yummiest lo mein noodles ever
• Learning to ride the subway
• Random nice people allowing me to use their employee restroom

Now I'm going to take a bath and put my feet up, while loving grandparents dote over my daughter. I love vacation.

Can't wait for vacation!

We are leaving for New Jersey the day after tomorrow. I can not wait. First of all... I am exhausted. And hot. I can't wait for cooler weather, and lots of hands and people to entertain Olivia for me. Today was actually a fairly good day. I don't usually use my blog as a place to complain, but right now I'm going to just vent.

First of all, this little girl 16 months, going on 16 years, has learned the art of throwing herself onto the floor and screaming her head off if something isn't quite so. For example, I went to give her a peice of bread, but right before handing it to her I decided to break in half. This was definitely not what she wanted, at all. And instead of just a "No." It was a full out fit. Fortunately these moments only last about 1 minute if completely ignored. Like, I leave the room ignore. She usually gets up and is her cheerful self again as soon as there is no attention. But I'm not sure this is the best thing to do. Am I letting her just get away with acting like a monster? And this strategy def would not work in public.

Then there's anytime we are around other children. She is not very nice. Well I take that back, she loves to give hugs and kisses and can be very sweet. But if you go near anything she's touched ever expect to get pinched, or hit and the object to be pulled from your hands while hearing her shout, "MINE!". Or if you are just playing innocently, she may come over and tackle you just for the fun of it. Most of the time I think this is innocent, but I'm still debating.

And then there are our sleep issues... which could be the root of these other problems? I am not sure. But she goes to bed around 7:30 or 8, wakes up around 6:30 or 7 (more like 6:30 lately). I know that's plenty of sleep for the night. But for naps, she is only sleeping about 45 minutes, an hour if I'm lucky. I have tried absolutely everything you could imagine. There is a quilt thumbtacked over her window to block out the sun. We have used white noise. We have used silence. We swim for over an hour before nap time. Plus lots of other playing. We have tried earlier, we have tried later. Nothing seems to effect it. Sometimes out of the blue she will sleep for almost 2 hours (this hasn't happened in about 3 months). I rack my brain trying to figure out exactly what we did, and try to replicate it, to no avail. I started just making her stay in her crib for the full hour no matter when she woke up. So most days she'd cry for about 20 minutes until I came to get her. Today I decided to go to her at the first sound of a whimper. I just patted her back and shushed her, and lo and behold she fell back to sleep! For about 20 more minutes, but still she fell back to sleep! So that might be my new strategy, and maybe eventually she will just stop waking up. We'll see.

And then theres the, what I would think to be "normal toddler issues". Such as emptying out every drawer she can reach. Pulling all the books off of all the shelves. Coloring on the table. Wanting to be in my arms every time I need to be doing something else, like looking at facebook cooking dinner. Etc, etc, etc.

But then in the same breath she melts my heart with kisses, and cutest little words, and watching her play with her dolls, and all that cute stuff. I guess that's motherhood for ya. How do we stay sane?? Like I said, I can't wait for vacation.

26 weeks and counting...

So today I am going for my glucose test.. fun stuff. Fortunately this pregnancy has been pretty uneventful. Hopefully it stays that way. I am worn out pretty easily. Olivia gets away with a lot she probably wouldn't if I wasn't so tired. I know that's terrible, consistency is key in all this parenting stuff, huh? But some days I just have to pretend I don't see her making a mess or whatever because I'd rather just wait until I have the energy later to clean it up. She also watches more TV than she probably should. I need to take a picture of my belly, but the batteries died on my camera right after I took this:
I was in the kitchen loading the dishwasher and came in to peak on her and this is how she was. In her car, feet on the dash, watching Elmo. It made me laugh. Well now I'm off to go drink my nastiness and get poked with needles... fun!

Happy Birthday Aaron!

Well it's been a while since I updated. Lots going on this summer.. my sister is in town and we have been trying to show her the best AZ has to offer. We went tubing down the Salt River, went up to Aaron's parents cabin and enjoyed a little cooler weather. We even drove out to Joe's Farm & Grill, which was a pretty far drive, but way fun and yummy. They were featured on Diners, Drive-In's and Dives. We had fun doing our Guy Fieri impressions... well mostly laughing at Aaron's. We spent some time in the pool, but not too much, because really it's just been brutal out! We've done lots of shopping, and last night went to the movies to see my Sister's Keeper.

Today is Aaron's birthday. He should get his own post. But even as I type Olivia is yelling for my attention. We are going somewhere yummy for dinner, just not sure where yet. We enjoyed free Joe's real BBQ, and Krispy Kreams...mmmm... I think I ate more of the dozen than Aaron. Today I'm feeling espcially grateful to married to such a wonderful man. He makes me smile every day. He works hard without complaint. He changes diapers. Most of all... he puts up with my crazy moods, and still tells me he loves me every day. <3

A post not all about Olivia!

So, last night we went on a super fun date with our good friends Sean and Becky. I just want to document that it actually happened. No kids (except the ones currently residing within mine and Becky's wombs) yummy food, and lots of fun games at Dave & Busters. There are lots of coupons out there for Dave&Busters, like when you buy $10 of games you get $10 free. So that's what we did, and had a blast. I LOVE ski ball, and was at the top of my game last night. I beat Aaron a few times, and let him win a couple ;)

The funniest thing they have is this picture thing, and it took our picture (mine and Aaron's) and morphed them into what our child would look like. It's so hilarious. I wish I had a scanner to show you what Olivia will look like in 5 years. I couldn't stop laughing.

Anyway, it was a fun night and even though it was a rare night out for us, it was worth it. I'm usually in bed, asleep by 10, and last night we didn't get HOME until 10:30!! Unheard of around here. And I'm actually sore from the basketball games, boxing game, and possibly even ski ball.

What did you do before 7am this morning?

Funny faces, etc.

Aaron still hasn't put his tools away from installing our pool fence. (Did I mention we now have a pool fence? YAY for that, and for a hand hubby who was able to do it with some help from his dad and brother!) So Olivia has decided this tool box is a perfect place to play, and potty (yes, she peed in the tool box). Here she's feeding her baby a drill bit.This is one of the many funny faces of Olivia. She loves to make people laugh and smile and she knows this face usually gets me to laugh. I'll try to catch some others on camera.

So lately we've been having fun around here. Swimming in the mornings, errands in the afternoon, sometimes swimming again. Sometimes we watch a video, the favorite on rotation right now is a Disney Sing-Along that has the 7 Dwarfs and their HiHo song. Olivia calls the video "IDo" which is how she says HiHo. She sings the song randomly throughout the day and it cracks me up.

What a day

So today was pretty hectic and I just feel like writing about it.

We start every day by swimming with cousins at Grandpa's. It's just great to have somewhere to get up and go to every day. So we went and did swim for our usual hour. Then I we came home showered, got changed, and I had to bring beans to the church for missionaries. So while I was making the beans I let Olivia eat an oreo. Not a good combo for right after showers. Those suckers are messy! But by the time the beans were done there was no time to try to clean Olivia, and we were just running to the church anyway. When I got there I couldn't find where to drop off the beans. So I'm toting around an oreo covered 1 year old, and a rather large crockpot of beans, meanwhile the shirt I'm wearing kept riding up but I couldn't pull it down with my hands full. So finally I found someone to take the beans, and as I got back in the car I glanced in my rearview mirror. I had beans in my hair, and oreo mess all over anywhere Olivia had touched. And I'm sure when I found whoever I gave my beans to my big prego belly was sticking out of my shirt. What a sight!

So we come home, clean up ourselves again, and it's nap time! So while O sleeps I scrub toilets, do laundry, unload the dishwasher...and not 35 minutes go by and she wakes up. Uughhh! So we have a calm lunch, but then it dawns on me that I haven't mailed my father's day cards yet. So I need to go to the post office because I have a package and no stamps. So that's always a fun activity with a cranky baby.

And then I got home, and my friends came over with their kids. It was a lot of fun, but at one point today there were 5 children in this house! All under the age of 4. Fun times. I watched my friend Aimee's two girls for a few hours. It was actually a lot of fun. I could just fast forward 3 years and picture this. In the 3 hours they were here we played house, ate dinner, looked under rocks for worms, found different leaves, picked up some sticks, found some ducks, got some bread to feed the ducks, collected some shells, walked home, played some more, and finally watched a movie while the youngest 2 fell asleep. That was 3 hours! Some day that will be all day. And I'll have to get up and do it again..and again.. but honestly at the end of the day I am so happy. So I guess that's why I wanted to blog about it. It will be fun to read when this actually is my life every day.

Exhuasted?

Super fun weekend

This is at the mall/Rainforest Cafe. I love Olivia's expression in this picture. I wish I could have gotten the front of her face. Oh well. Pointing at absolutely everyting.

And she loves this thing. We didn't have any cash so I was just letting her play on it, when some nice guy came and put his kids on it too, put in his dollar and let Olivia stay on for the ride. She was thrilled.

So Friday night we went to the Rainforest Cafe for dinner. I thought Olivia would love it there, and she pretty much did. She was way tired and a bit cranky, and just wanted to run around all over the place and not sit confined in her high chair. She def enjoyed it when I finally did let her run around and dance, and point to everything. It was a lot of fun. They have a coupon on their website for $10 off, so that def made it worth it! Olivia and I have matching outfits. She got the shirt a few months ago, and then I got one similar without realizing it matches Olivia's shirt almost exactly. And we both have brown shorts that go with it! So I put us in our matching outfits for our outing to the mall. :) Sucha dork, I know.

Saturday we did some work around the house, and went shopping. Then we went swimming. And this morning we went and had some fun at the park. Olivia ran in the grass with her baby doll. I love watching her play with her doll. It's just the cutest thing to me. Today she hit its head up against the tree and said, "Uh-oh... owww.. mmmmwwaa!" And kissed its head. LOL

Our family fun day!

So Aaron had off from work today, and we certainly made the most of it. I have been slacking at updating this blog, sorry fam.

But this morning we went out to breakfast at the Farmhouse in Gilbert. So yummy. Olivia was so good at breakfast. She liked saying hi and waving to everyone. Then we played in some fountains outside the resturant. It was actually gorgeous out. There was a slight breeze and it was probably about 80. Perfect. Then we went to Once Upon A Child, which is a store that sells gently used kids items, and they have some new stuff too. We went to get a portable potty seat for Olivia. She has been doing great on the potty, but when we're out and she tells me she has to go she won't sit on the big one with me holding her. It freaks her out, and I don't really blame her. So I found this kind that folds up into fours that I can fit in my purse and take with us. Then we came home and took naps. Olivia only slept for 45 minutes! I guess she knew it was family fun day and didn't want to miss out. Then we went shopping and got some groceries and some big girl underwears for Olivia! Tomorrow I am going to put her in them and see how we do. At home with no diaper on she has been pretty accident free for the past two days. So we will see how it goes.

Then we finished the day swimming and grilling with our friends Mike and Jessica and their baby. It was a lot of fun. Olivia loves showing off in the water.

And I love bragging about Olivia :) She probably adds a new word or expression to her vocab every day. Some of the latest include, "Wow!" "Ewwww!" "Ooooh petty!" I'd feel safe saying she has about 30 words she uses, but I haven't really sat down and counted. She also started doing hand motions for songs we sing together. She has Itsy Bitsy Spider down pat, and most all of Popcorn Popping. I love watching her do these things. It's so fun.

Although with all the new funness... she also become a little naughty! She started hitting, and pinching faces. She does it mostly when she's tired and angry. But still... where do they even learn to hit?? It has been no fun to have to start disciplining.

Anyway, it has been a great day and now I am beyond ready for bed. As fas as this pregnancy goes I seriously feel fine. I feel the baby moving around lots now which is fun. Aaron even felt a little something the other night. Can't believe it's half way done... but I know this second half feels twice as long as the first. =)

I was wrong.

We're having a girl! I don't have much time to post, Olivia missed me while we were gone forever, and wanting my attention.

But it was great. I love ultrasounds (which mom doesn't??)! Our baby was not very cooperative at all. But the tech was great. She had me rolling all around, and poking all over, and we were able to get a quick peak. But she said she's 99.9% it's a girl. There were still some things she couldn't get a good view of, so oh darn, I have to go back for another ultrasound next month. Due date and all that stayed the same.

I seriously can't believe it's another girl! I was really sure it was a boy. But I'm excited. It will be fun for Olivia to have a little sister.

Memorial Day Weekend, etc

So for Memorial Day weekend we went up to Aaron's parents cabin. It was fun. Aaron caught a lot of a fish, and one that was about 18 inches! (I think..) They were so delicious. Olivia had fun picking flowers for the dog across the street, playing in mud puddles, and chasing her cousins.

When we got home that night I hit my pinkie toe on my rocking chair. I thought it might have been broken because of the pain and swelling. Well then this morning... I hit the same toe again! And this time it was obviously broken. So now I have a little boot to wear, and a ridiculous excuse to lay around all day with my foot up. Well all day is an exaggeration... I still have a 14 month old to run around after.

Olivia has been doing so well. She's still doing swim lessons, and is learning so much. She cries at the end, but I think she's just tired. She falls asleep on the way home almost every day. Also, I have been putting her on the potty since she was about 10 months old. Now she's 14 months and she signs potty consistently after she goes. And just reccently started to sign it before, with enough time to get her to the potty to go. In fact today she has been running around naked all afternoon, and hasn't had a single accident! I am so nervous to put her in underwear, because it just seems so crazy, but she's def getting there.

Tomorrow is our big ultrasound appointment! We find out if this little one is a boy or girl. I am so excited. I think it's a boy, but that's a total guess. But hey I have a 50% chance of being right! Anyway I will be sure to post when we get home.

Just one of those times I feel like writing.

I kind of spent most of my life with the theory of never making a bed, because what's the point, you just mess it up again in a few hours! That theory doesn't work when you're a mom. Because no matter what you do, it is undone again in a few hours. Dishes, I feel like I washed 5 minutes ago are suddenly again in the sink. Toys I know I just put away, are again strewn throughout the house. Laundry that has been washed, is once again on the floor in the hamper. Toilets that have been just scrubbed, need scrubbing again, same with bath tubs. And don't even get me started on the kitchen floor. I think I've swept the same millions of crumbs thousands of times. And there's always more.

I could keep going, but it's getting depressing. :) So since becoming a wife and mom I've really had to adopt a new theory. And that even though something will be undone in .234 seconds, it's still worth doing.

But I still don't make the bed. Just don't ever let my grandmother find out. She irons her pillow cases for Pete's sake!

Here's me and Olivia being goofy.. well Elmo and Oscar. Saw these hats in the mall and had to show Olivia.

Here's the belly at 17 weeks. It's huge.

And me with messy hair and wrinkled shirt.

Olivia has discovered the joy of watermellon. So yummy.

So the crankiness has subsided... for the most part. Last week we started swim lessons. The first two days were rough, and I called it baby water-boarding... but now she seems to love it. I'm surprised at how much she learns. It's fun.

In less than two weeks we get to find out if our little baby is going to be a brother or sister for Olivia. The fun thing is my best friend in NJ is finding out on the same day, at almost the same time!! So fun. Other than swim lessons, we are just trying to find ways to keep cool. We are doing malls and musuems and splashparks in the afternoons. The only downside is, so is everyone else in Mesa! It is well into summer weather here, and I'm afraid it's going to be in the 100's until I deliver this baby.

Just some cuteness.

Here are a few more pictures from before the sickness. By the way, she is better now, just majorly CRANkY!