My Beautiful Girl

She just makes life so much sweeter. . .

Olivia passed her hearing tests today. They tried to get Olivia to wear these ear buds, but she wouldn't tolerate it, so we had to go into the sound booth. This required Olivia to sit still and be really quiet. She did awesome considering that's very difficult for her. They would ask her to point to her nose, eyes, ears, etc. at different sound volumes. She didn't respond to the real soft volumes (but I could barely hear them.) Then, they'd play noises and she'd have to look towards the right or left and a toy would appear. All in all, I think she did great. . .with just a bit of crying. Tomorrow, we try week #3 of gymnastics. I hope it goes as well as the last week! We've been practicing a lot at home.

Tuesday, June 15, 2010 - Update

Tomorrow, Olivia has a hearing evaluation that is required by the school district. I'm pretty sure that she can hear just fine as she passed every hearing evaluation as a baby and I can't cough without her waking up. Oh, and the fact that she can repeat the word "onomatopoeia." But, I'm curious to see what they find out and how they actually perform hearing tests on toddlers. She'll definitely not raise her hand when she hears a beep. I almost forgot that she had the test tomorrow or that I'm meeting friends for lunch or that I have to pick up her weighted blanket or that another friend is coming by tomorrow after work. Sheesh. . . that tells me I have a bit too much going on as I usually have to cancel something to go to something else. Oh, the days of sitting at home and doing nothing are over. . .thank goodness. Hopefully, I'll find a better way of organizing my days. In college I was the epitome of efficient. . not quite sure what happened but I always feel like I'm forgetting something nowadays.

Sunday, June 13, 2010 - Update

No pictures today, mom.

Olivia has been so funny lately. She has recently taken a huge interest in her baby dolls. . .especially her Bitty Baby. I keep asking her if the baby has a name other than just Baby. Last week, she seemed to think about it and informed me that her baby's name was. . .Table. I laughed so hard that Olivia seemed to think she had chosen a really good name so I'm afraid it's going to stick. Baby Table. . .Maybe I'll have to help name my grandchildren.

Ryan and I purchased a new washer and dryer over the weekend. Our current ones were given to us in 2001 as an engagement present. They have been awesome and I'm a little sad to get rid of them, although they are on their last legs. Hopefully, our new ones will be just as good. We purchased an LG front-loading washer and dryer that have received stellar reviews. Sadly, we don't get them for another 2 weeks. I think I'll be kind of excited to try out a load of laundry. . .that doesn't happen often. :)

Saturday, June 12, 2010 - Update

We celebrated my mom's 58th birthday today. Her actual birthday isn't until the 21st, but the next few weekends are very full. So, I won't wish her an official happy birthday yet, but we had a great time and I thought I'd share some pictures.

Sleeping Beauty

Friday, June 11, 2010 - Update

We had a playdate today with one of my most dearest, closest friends. . .Stacie and her daughter Madison. Stacie is one of the most beautiful people I know. . inside and out and I have been honored to be her friend for the past (almost) 20 years. Wow, I feel old. Her daughter is just as amazing and we enjoyed having them over today. I enjoyed introducing Madison to "the slide." She was just as giddy about it as Olivia was when she first got it. Thanks for a great afternoon!

Sugar, Sugar

After I had my kidney stone, I had some blood work done that showed an elevated blood sugar. So, a few weeks ago, I had to go in for a 2 hour blood glucose test. I just got the results back today and my blood sugar levels are indicative of diabetes. I'll know more when I go in to talk to my doctor about the results next week. Maybe this explains my fatigue, headaches and general feelings of malaise that I often have. Maybe once I get this under control, I'll feel better than I ever have. At this point, I'm pretty sure it can be controlled with diet. . . I just don't know what I can and can't eat. I know I'll be giving up soda, sugar, bread, etc. but there are a lot of gray areas and foods I am uncertain about. If anyone is diabetic or follows a diabetic diet, I'd love to compile a list of foods that I can still eat. Any help would be appreciated.

Thursday, June 10, 2010 - Update

Wow, what a fantastic day! It was a busy day, but a good day. Our day began with our second try at gymnastics. It went wonderfully. My SIL, Shelley, came with us (to give me support more than anything) and Olivia acted completely different. She wasn't able to do many of the techniques and needs to learn to do forward rolls, I guess, but she wasn't crying or throwing a fit. She'll have time to learn how to do everything. . .I just didn't want her interrupting the entire class while she did. I couldn't be more thrilled!

Then, we headed to her first evaluations with the school district and met with the psychologist. I think she did everything very well , but when she got to some pictures she didn't know (like chains and a funnel) she jumped up and performed a great rendition of Ring Around The Rosie. How could anyone not fall in love with this girl? She is behind where she needs to be, but I think she's doing a fantastic job and loving life in the process. Oh, one thing we need to work on. . .when Olivia was asked if she was a boy or girl, she said boy. . .so more dresses, pigtails and pedicures are in her future. :)

One funny story before I go. . .After I got out of the shower tonight, I walked out into the dining room to find Olivia's face and shirt covered in what looked like chocolate. I asked Ryan what she had been eating. He informed me that she hadn't eaten anything. I looked at her and again asked Ryan what she had eaten. Then, I saw the tube of lipstick on the table. Ryan then told me how Olivia had been repeatedly saying, "It's not chapstick. It's not chapstick!" Now, it made sense to him. See what happens when I go to take a quick shower? At least it wasn't my good lipstick. :)

Wednesday, June 9, 2010 - Update

Olivia continues to go to occupational therapy at Wesley and she loves it. She knows the receptionists and some of the kids that are in the waiting room each week. We go early to practice our waiting skills in an environment that isn't at all judgemental. She LOVES Miss Heather, her therapist, and talks about her all week. Despite the cost, it has been a very positive experience for all of us. She continues to receive therapy through Rainbows, which we also love, and will do so until she is 3. At that time, she will continue services through the school district, if she qualifies. We begin that process tomorrow when we meet with the school psychologist. All in all, she is doing fantastic and we are so lucky and blessed.

Tuesday, June 8, 2010 - Update

Is there anything better than a warm sunny day spent sitting in the grass with a popsicle and a best friend? And talking about. . .well, whatever it is that 2 1/2 year olds talk about. Olivia was excited to go to Izzy's house today after being apart for about a (gasp) week and a half. The four of us have so much fun together. Shelley and I spent the day thinking of ideas for their 3rd birthday parties. Etsy.com has the cutest dresses and invitations. August is still a ways away, but it will be here before I know it. I still can't believe she'll be three!

Show Me Your Happy Face

Sunday, June 6, 2010 - Update

So Bow-tiful!

Mom, bow out! (Exact words)

My little girl who hates having things in her hair, wanted to put an entire package of bows in her hair this morning. I remember when she didn't even have enough hair for one bow, so I gladly obliged. I think her girliness is starting to come out. :)

Full Of Beans

Autumn: What is this?

Olivia: I think it's kitty food

Autumn: No, it looks like a new litter box for me.

It's a tub full of beans

Becoming one with the beans. :)

Because of Olivia's sensory difficulties, I recently made her a tub of beans to play with. She started out barely touching it. I think part of that is because she thought it was kitty food and knows she shouldn't play with that. Later, she dug both hands in to find the toys that I hid inside. As you can tell, she quickly decided to put tons of her toys in the tub. . .and later sat down in the beans. She now loves playing with her beans. She practices pouring them into a bowl by turning her wrists instead of shaking the beans out. This will help her transition to utensil use. I just have to remember to keep the lid on because Autumn is very curious about it as well.

Gymnastics

It was a rough morning. . .

Well, we had an awful experience with Olivia's first day of gymnastics. We ended up leaving early. . .both of us with tears in our eyes. Olivia didn't do anything that she was suppposed to do, she wanted to run around everywhere and when she didn't get to, she threw herself on the floor and screamed. . .loudly. I am embarrassed to show my face there again. I know that she needs to familiarize herself with new places and people, but we were so disruptive to the class. Nobody there understood how far Olivia has come and the fact that she can even jump is miraculous. We didn't even know if she would walk. Olivia is very spirited and likes to be in the middle of everything. She is not one of those kids who stand quietly by their moms and watch. Olivia is not a tantrum-thrower though, so I was shocked when she threw tantrum after tantrum and each time she did, I felt worse and worse. Whew. . .don't know if this is the right thing for her or not. I do know that this wasn't a good way to start the day.

Exploration Place

Grandma Mary surprised us this afternoon with a trip for all the grandkids to Exploration Place. We all had a blast. It's exciting to see Olivia's interests blossom since our last trip there.

Where there's a water table. . .there's Olivia, although she wasn't nearly as excited to play in it as she was last time we went.

Giddy-up, Olivia

She loved playing in the kitchen and helping mommy eat some yummy food.

All of the cousins weighing in on each other.

She found a slide. . .and didn't care that it was part of a stomach in the Grossology section.

Their favorite part, however, was running the vet clinic.

" I need an IV in room 5. . .STAT!"

A long day at the office

Playing with blocks. . .a great way to end a great day!

Tuesday, June 1, 2010 - Update

Olivia has grown up so much in the last few weeks. I feel like we're de-baby-proofing the house as we threw away all of her bottles, packed up her high chair, took the padding off the coffee table, put away a lot of old "baby" toys, etc. Today, she came up to me and said she wanted to try to peepee in the potty and that's exactly what she did. So, we might start potty training sooner than I thought. She had a brief peak of interest a few months ago, but hasn't shown much since.

She's also starting to show interest in changing her babies' diapers. Every time I change her, I also have to change baby's and duck's and otter's, etc diapers. And, we can't just change their diaper. . .we have to use wipes too. Of course, I can't put the same diaper back on them either. . .I have to get a new one. Boy, I'm going to have to buy some doll diapers. I did save some of her preemie and newborn diapers for this very reason. Olivia LOVES her birth size doll. It wasn't intended to be a toy for her. . .more of a keepsake, so she knows that she has to be very gentle with it. In the above picture, she carefully put the doll on her bed, covered her up and informed me that she was sleeping. She knows this doll is very special.

Remembrance

We remember all of those who have fought for our freedom. We remember those who gave the ultimate sacrifice. We also remember on this day, our amazing son Logan. It's easy, as time goes on, for others to forget that we lost a son, but it's often at the forefront of our minds. We still ache with sadness. We still weep in pain. He will always be our miracle and beloved son. Please take a moment to remember all who are dear to you. . .those that are with you and those you have lost.

A Look Back

Sept 2007
Dec 2007

March 2008

June 2008

Sept 2008

Dec 2008

March 2009

June 2009

Sept 2009

Dec 2009

March 2010

(almost) June 2010