Autumn Update

Just thought I'd give a quick update on my favorite kitty. We've had her now for 5 months and she's doing fantastic. She was pretty sick for the first 3 months that we had her. Our vet believed it was either asthma or a parasitic lung infection. We believe it was actually the latter and she had lungworms. After she received treatment for that, she's been doing great. She now has all of her kitten feistiness.

I now can't imagine life without her in our family. She follows me around everywhere and sleeps on my pillow. She has so much love to give.

Her favorite toys are the pom poms that you buy at craft stores. The only problem is that they always end up under the furniture and I have to fish them out for her.

No cat should be without their pom pom. . .and no family should be without their Autumn. :)

Friday, February 26, 2010 - Update

I apologize. . I haven't had many pictures to share lately. It's mainly because Olivia has wanted to be on the other side of the camera and take the pictures herself. Here is a picture that I tried to take as Olivia attempted to grab the camera from me.

And here is our house from Olivia's perspective. Eventually, we'll get the rest of the walls painted. :)

Be sure to check out Dizzy From Izzy to see all of the pictures that Olivia's cousin, Izzy, has taken. Some of Izzy's photographs are astounding for a 2 1/2 year old.

Tuesday, February 23, 2010 - Update

Grandma Mary watched Olivia today and I was able to rest up. I appreciated it so much. I also heard that Mary was getting her haircut today with Kim (Ryan's sister) and Olivia's cousins. They all go to the same lady who cuts their hair every 6 weeks or so. Olivia has needed a haircut very badly, but I've been terrified to go back. The last two times have been disastrous. Remember THIS: Olivia's first haircut? Well, they agreed to take Olivia with them to get her haircut. I guess she did wonderfully! I don't know if it was because I wasn't there or if she saw the other kids getting their hair cut or if it helped that grandma stood up instead of sitting with her in the chair. Maybe Jatena is that good at cutting kids' hair or Olivia is outgrowing some of her fears. She was such a big girl and now she has a cute little bob. Thank you, Mary and Kim, for taking on one more child and making things so easy on me today. I don't know how to thank you!!!

Still Sick

We're still sick around here, but Olivia seems to be handling it better than me. There isn't much that slows her down. She has just decided to add a nap these last couple of days. Olivia is so frustrated with me because I have NO voice. To her that means. . .less books to be read, less songs to be sung, etc. And no matter how sweetly she asks, I can't get my voice back. Maybe it'll come back tomorrow and we'll both feel better.

A Bit Under The Weather

I'm not feeling well. I have the achy, sore throat, feels-like-my-head-is-going-to-explode type of stuff. Olivia is feeling a bit under the weather as well. It even made me miss a surprise party that I was to attend today. I love surprise parties, but Ryan had to attend this one by himself. (Happy 30th Austin!) Hopefully, Olivia and I start feeling better soon.

Thursday, February 18, 2010 - Update

Thank you for your replies to my last post. I do think that Olivia has some oral sensitivities and you pair that with 2 year old pickiness and it's a frustrating combination. She has never wanted things in her mouth (pacifier, thumb, etc)and is real finicky when it comes to what goes in it. I'm going to do some research and try to figure out what I need to do to help her. I'm proud to say that for dinner tonight, she ate 1/2 grilled cheese sandwich and some peaches. That is amazing for Olivia!!

Oh, and you should hear Olivia sing the alphabet song. It is the cutest thing I've ever heard! I've been trying to get it on video, but she's being a bit camera shy. She ends the song with. . "Q, R, S, TV, E, W, X, 1,2,3." I'll try my hardest to catch it on video in the near future.

Wednesday, February 17, 2010 - Update

My sweet girl

There are some days when hardly a bite of food is swallowed. (Not with me, I unfortunately eat just fine.) Olivia either won't put food in her mouth or if she does, she chews it up and spits it out. Today was one of those days. I don't know if it has to do with her reflux or her prematurity or a lack of hunger or if it's behavioral. She can swallow food, but sometimes it's as if she really doesn't want to. Does anyone else experience these types of eating difficulties? I am feeling so frazzled. I'd love to hear from you.

Fashion Diva

Bath Time

♪ Wash wash, scrub scrub, I use soap and water. . . ♪

Are you taking my picture?

I love to sing!!

Sunday, February 14, 2010 - Update

So much sweeter than a box of chocolates

As you might already know, my husband does not "believe" in Valentines Day. Don't feel too sorry for me. He just doesn't think a person should do something nice for their significant other only once a year. And feel forced to do it. (I think one year, he must have had an empty Valentines box at school.) He somehow finds ways around it. For instance, this year, I got a massage for Happy Super Bowl Day. I've received things through the years for President's Day, Lincoln's Birthday, etc. This year, he also helped me paint the laundry room, which I'll take over flowers or chocolates any day. Plus, he does thoughtful things throughout the year, so it's not so bad having a husband who doesn't celebrate Valentines Day. For all those that do (and don't) I hope you have a wonderful day overflowing with blessings.

Three's Company

Go-worm, Olivia and Ree-ree

The three of them go everywhere together.

Thursday, February 11, 2010 - Update

Just some random pictures of our days here at home. We working on coloring "back and forth" and "up and down." Then, we'll move on to making circles. . .just some suggestions from her OT. We're also trying to stack more than 4 blocks and string Cheerios on a pipe cleaner. She's doing awesome!

Wednesday, February 10, 2010 - Update

Shawna and Mckenna

Kerrick and Olivia sharing a coloring book.

Today was a great day. It started with a playdate. My friend, Shawna, came over with her son, Kerrick, and daughter, Mckenna. Shawna and I went to college together and have been friends for 12+ years. Her children are as sweet as they are adorable. After our playdate, Olivia and I met Ryan at Bartellis and had pizza for lunch. Then, Olivia and I came home and took a 2 hour nap! It was heaven. . .especially since she rarely naps anymore. The best news of all came when I weighed Olivia tonight. She now weighs 22 lbs!!! I'm sure her newfound appreciation of chocolate milk had a hand in that. It's been a slow process, but we're getting there. :)

Occupational Therapy

Yesterday, Olivia had an OT evaluation at Wesley (where she spent her 105 day NICU stay.) Her developmental pediatrician suggested some additional OT due to her fine motor delay. It went really well and not only do they feel confident that they can help her, they gave me a lot of ideas to do at home. She will be starting weekly OT therapy next week. Olivia struggles with performing tasks that require her to turn her wrists. . .such as unscrewing lids, using utensils and opening door knobs. She still does not have a lot of strength in her upper body due to her premature birth as babies do a lot of strength and resistance training in the womb. Her reluctance to use her arms really set her back. Olivia LOVED her occupational therapist and really latched on to her. I'm hoping this additional therapy will allow her to catch up in this area and I'm actually really excited about it. It will be one more reason to get out of the house each week, which will make the rest of the winter go by that much faster. Please pray for Olivia's continued progress in all areas.

Snowy Day

And I have to wear these on my hands too?

Ready. . . .set. . .


GO!

Cousin Katie and Olivia

Cousin Alex and Olivia

My new favorite picture (Alex and Olivia)

Saturday, February 6, 2010 - Update

We took Olivia to Exploration Place for the first time today. Lately, we've had to get over any lingering germophobic tendencies and let Olivia play. She needs it. She needs to play and run and jump and explore. Letting her do so has become more important than keeping her healthy (although we did stop at the Purell stations quite often.) I think she had a pretty good time and you'll quickly be able to tell what her favorite part was. She's still talking about it. . .

WATER!!

She was soaked.

She played with the girl behind her (whose name was Autumn.) She reminded me of Izzy's cousin, Maddie. They played very well together, although I don't think Autumn quite understood why Olivia had to drench herself.

A quick break on the pony roller coaster.

Friday, February 5, 2010 - Update

Olivia had so much energy today. . .I was in awe. She literally jumped from one wall to the next all day long. At first, I thought, "Boy, she'll take a good nap this afternoon." Then, the afternoon passed. Then, I thought, "Boy, she'll go to bed early," and her normal bedtime passed. The girl did not so much as take a breather at all today. She did everything maniacally. . .she played maniacally, she ate maniacally, she colored maniacally (I have proof) she took a bath maniacally, etc. It was as if she drank about 100 energy drinks. I don't know where she gets all of her energy when she basically lives off crackers. I was going to try to take a picture of her today, but it would have just been one big blur. . .LOL. What a crazy girl!

Thursday, February 4, 2010 - Update

I thought these pictures were fitting since I had a dentist appt today. Olivia liked the seahorse toothbrush that I picked up for her while I was there. She likes to put the toothbrush in her mouth, but. . .she doesn't do any real brushing. That task is for mom and dad to do and she hates it. I never get her teeth brushed very well and I have this huge fear that her teeth are going to go bad. I mean, how do you keep it fun for your child, but at the same time. . .do a thorough job? We usually use a vibrating tooth brush which has really helped us get to this point, but we still have a long way to go. Hopefully, she is a lot better by the time she has to go to the dentist because I can't imagine it at this point. Yikes! But, my appointment went fine. I've never dreaded the dentist, however, like some people do. I'd much rather go there than to a checkup at the doctor's office.

In high school, I thought I had decided that I wanted to be a dental hygenist, but later decided to go with my childhood desire to be a teacher. Of course, I ALWAYS wanted to be a mom. . .that decision never changed. I didn't realize that it would have been easier to become a doctor or a lawyer than a mom. My greatest desire was the hardest to achieve. . . how is that fair? Guess life isn't fair. . . .

Olivia and I decided to take daddy out to lunch today. We met him at work and decided on Spangles at the last minute. We placed our order and got ready to pay when we were informed that our meal was already paid for. It seems that some kind person paid $100 to pay for other people's meals. What a generous thing to do! Last week, someone shoveled our driveway. Sometimes the world seems like such a cruel place, but there are so many people who truly define what kindness and generosity mean. I still remember a gift card that we received anonymously while Olivia was in the hospital. It warms my heart to remember it. I read another blog called All Dolled Up and someone anonymously paid off their medical bills!! I can just see God smiling down on people who do such random acts of kindness. It makes the world such a wonderful place.

Tuesday, February 2, 2010 - Update

Ryan and I had a wonderful getaway. I took some pictures with my iphone, but they aren't posting on the blog very well. We did a lot of shopping (for Olivia) and eating and relaxing. It would have been a perfect little vacation if I hadn't gotten a horrendous headache. It kept me up all night long. I always keep Excedrin with me because it's my headache medicine of choice, but it did nothing. Ryan planned an elaborate birthday for me, but one of my most appreciated gifts was his run to Walgreens at 7 am to get me some Aleve. It worked wonders for me and I finally went to sleep around 8 am. We later went to Dave and Buster's and pooled our tickets to get Olivia a huge stuffed giraffe. Now, that it's home, I'm sort of regretting our decision because where do we put another huge giraffe, ya know? Olivia had a great time with grandma and grandpa and I wonder who missed us more. . .Olivia or Autumn. Autumn sure was glad to have us home, but Olivia probably could have played at her grandparents a bit longer. ;)