C25K

For years I have wanted to start running. Years. And it has never happened. I never knew how to get started until I heard great things about the C25K program. Then there was the problem with time and kids. Abigail does not like to ride in her stroller and I can't run while lugging around a 19+ lb baby. I just don't have any time to myself. So tonight I decided that Olivia and I would do it together. Ryan puts Abigail to bed each night and we have about an hour and a half before Olivia goes to bed. So, I pulled the app up on my phone, laced up our sneakers and Olivia and I headed out the door.




She did awesome. It would be amazing to run my first 5K. Even more amazing to do it with my daughter.






We made it half way and she tired out on me. LOL! I ended up carrying her part of the way home. So, I got more of a workout than I planned on.


But, the two of us had a really great time!!

Jodi- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Sunday, September 1, 2013

We spent the day at home and Olivia enjoyed playing with her new birthday gifts. She received such a variety this year. We are truly blessed. It wasn't as hot today, so it was pleasant under the deck in the shade.



She also received a game called Zingo. It is super fun and I bet we have played it 50 times already.




And this cash register is among the favorites. Not only is it fun to play grocery store with, it also teaches all about money. Olivia was adding up pennies, nickels and dimes very well today! Abigail also loves to push the buttons and make them beep.


And, a funny story about Baby Butterscotch pony.




Olivia got it for Christmas and hardly played with it until Abigail showed an interest in it. It honestly wasn't as neat as I thought it would be. I learned, however, that for the past 9 months it has been in Try Me mode. Haha! So, now it's like a brand new gift. LOL! Oh dear, I worry about myself sometimes.

Jodi- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Party Time!

Welcome to Care-A-Lot and Olivia's 6th birthday celebration. It's a lot of work to have a birthday party at home. Remind me of this next year. ;-)















Olivia was in heaven with two of her best friends, Sage and Madison.



Uncle Donnie even tried on a Care Bear mask. Awwwww.



The boys (and Madison) were drawn to the train table.



Sage is Olivia's best friend from preschool. Oh, how I wish they went to kindergarten together!



Happy Birthday to Olivia!



Thanks to my friend Amy for making the adorable cake! We had chocolate, strawberry and rainbow!




Madison made the cutest Care Bear!! Could not get over how cute she looked!




Olivia was ready to open presents!




The hit of the party was Olivia's sandbox that Grandpa Glunt built her! It is amazing with benches that fold down. It was well over 100 degrees and the kids did not want to come inside!



Madison and Olivia were the last two standing. LOL! It's never too hot for some sandbox fun!




It's so easy to cover when you are done playing! Awesome!!



Alison and Abigail liked playing together too.



It was a great adventure in Care-A-Lot!




Olivia did help clean up after her party with her new vacuum. She recently realized that her toy vacuum didn't really suck anything up. She wanted a real vacuum and was so excited to get this!


Thank you to all who came, endured the craziness and made Olivia's 6 th birthday celebration very memorable!

Jodi- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Six Year Stats

Olivia had her 6 year checkup yesterday. After 11 months of only gaining .5 lbs, she has gained 1 lb 9 oz since July. So, the appetite stimulant seems to be working very well.

Weight: 33 lbs 3 oz - less than 3rd percentile

Height: 42 1/2 inches - 8th percentile

BMI: 13

100% Sweet, smart and adorable!



Jodi- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Beauty And Brains

Abigail is still not crawling, however, she drags herself everywhere and is very very fast. Surely I don't have to be concerned about the discrepancy between her arms and legs strength? She bears weight on her legs, but doesn't pull up yet.



One of her favorite places to go is the bathroom to play with the bath toys. These are the only toys she plays with. She prefers phones, remotes, electronics, computer mice or anything Olivia is playing with. She seems bored with her baby toys. She looks at me like," So, what am I supposed to do with this?". She examines things like she is trying to figure out how they work. Seriously, I've nailed down her first birthday ideas to electronics, bath toys and food. LOL! I had to take down the carbon monoxide detector from the hall outlet because she pulled it off, took off the back and was trying to get the battery out.



All of that mischief wears a girl out! We are wanting to wait to put the baby gate up until after Olivia's party, but I don't know if we'll make it. Right now we have Olivia's bench across the stairs. And I better go move that hammer from off the floor. Geez.

She even looks pretty when she sleeps. Brains and beauty. . .she will be a force to be reckoned with. LOL!


Jodi- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

The Best Day

What an amazing day! Six years ago I never thought I would say that about today.  In fact, I’ve struggled with that over the years. How can I celebrate one of the worst days of my life every year?On August 27, 2007 my whole world came crashing down.  I thought I was losing both of my babies that I prayed so hard for.  The odds were against us.  The chance of survival was slim, the risks were great and the road was long.  But, tonight, Olivia said it best.

"This is the best day ever.  Thank you for giving me this day.”

And that’s not the only time she made me cry today.  The first thing she did when she woke up was sing Happy Birthday. . .to her twin brother, Logan.  What a loving, selfless way to start her own birthday!  Tonight, she had all of us sing it to him while she pointed up at the sky. 

I was able to take cupcakes to celebrate with her at school.  I’m no longer worried about her not making friends.  I’m more worried about her becoming the class clown. LOL!  She was the same goofy Olivia that she is at home.  When we sang Happy Birthday to her in her class, she got up and danced.  It did my heart good to know that she is comfortable being herself.  And who cannot love her?

A friend of mine from high school made these cupcakes for me.  They looked so cute with her Care Bear plates and napkins.  And they were delicious!

We ended the day with dinner at her favorite restaurant, Genghis Grill.  And at 6:18 pm, while we were there, she officially became six years old. We thought it was neat that her number was 56. . .she walked in being 5 and walked about being 6. 

And she swears that she got taller. 

Two of her favorite gifts were her Squinkies mansion

and her cottage bed tent that she is happily snoozing in. May her future far exceed even her best dreams.

Thank you, Olivia, for giving ME this day.

Happy 6th Birthday!

I can't believe it has been six years.  Every year I make a slideshow of pictures from the previous year.  Hopefully it is something Olivia will like to look back on as she gets older.  This year I chose a song from One Republic because they are one of Olivia's favorite bands.  It's called 'I Lived.'

They did not want us to resuscitate Olivia and Logan as they were not considered viable until 24 weeks.  We had to beg them to.  But, she lived. And she has been given this gift of life, much like we all have, and I hope she lives it to the fullest.  I hope she experiences all life has to offer and doesn't hold back on pursuing her dreams. But, please don't actually break any bones, Olivia. ;-)




Of course, tomorrow is actually Logan's birthday too and he would also be six years old.  I can't help but wonder what he would be like.  I think I will always wonder that. I know he is so proud of both of his sisters and I celebrate his birth as well.  The world was truly blessed with two amazing people on August 27, 2007. I still can't believe that was six years ago. 

Sunday, August 25, 2013

We had a great time celebrating Izzy's birthday today at Pump It Up. Olivia has been begging to go back there for some time.


While going down the slide, she got a blister on her arm. Tonight she named her blister "Blisty." And she was so worried that it would be gone in the morning, she made me take a picture of it. I'm so not kidding. Only Olivia. :-)



Jodi- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

I Will Always Come

It was a rough morning at our house. Olivia's excitement for kindergarten turned to the realization that kindergarten meant less time with me. In her words, that "shattered" her heart. She loves her teacher, yet is so afraid of the rock wall in P.E. She cried and cried. She cried because her favorite pants have a hole in the knee. She cried because her favorite socks are too small and all of the others have bumps in them. I was so upset all day. I read this tonight and it really rang true today. I just hope Olivia knows that I will always come.

http://lisajobaker.com/2013/08/a-promise-for-my-daughter/

Right now that means putting her on the bus only to drive to school, get out of the van to watch her get off the bus, give her a hug and a kiss, get back in the van and drive home. Or telling her about the funny things she did when she was three and watching videos of them. Or sitting with her on the couch so that she can calm down and tell me what's wrong. Or telling another scary story about us getting lost in a deep dark cave while sitting on the floor of my closet. I've been here for 6 years and I'll be here for 60 more!!

Jodi- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Most Viewed Post

I have had this blog for almost 6 years and have written about a variety of topics. The most viewed post (by a wide margin) is one I wrote about gestational diabetes. Multiple people still view it every day and it comes in as the top post every week and every month. I am not sure how people are finding it. Is it, like, the first site that pops up when googling the topic? Do doctors hand out the web address to every woman diagnosed with gestational diabetes. I just find it hilarious! And I'm sure by drawing attention to it, it will quadruple in hits. Man, I should have proofread it more seriously had I known that many people were going to read it. LOL!!

http://loganssisters.gluntfamily.com/2012/09/the-diabetes-post.html?m=1
Jodi- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

9 Months

I told you it was a big day today. Abigail also turned 9 months old!




She is just amazing! She says baba, mama, dada and baaa (for bath.) She also claps and waves bye bye. She has two teeth and thinks that entitles her to a steak. She loves to eat and knows when what you are eating is better than what is on her highchair.

Our baby scale broke, so I don't know what she weighs. I would guess around 19 lbs. She is the most mobile child I've ever seen who doesn't crawl. She scoots, army crawls, rolls and hops like a frog to get where she is going. She transitions from sitting to laying down ( and vice versa) very well. She is not yet pulling to a stand, but will bear weight on her legs. She does not seem interested in taking steps at all. At this stage in development, Olivia was riding/walking her pony all over the house. I put Abigail on the pony and she looked at me like," Are you going to push me?" LOL!

Abigail loves anything electronic and seems bored by baby toys. The other day she was surrounded by about 10 baby toys and chose the random computer mouse laying around. Her fine motor skills are exceptional! I love watching her little personality develop. She is just so incredibly sweet ( and really takes after daddy!!)




Jodi- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

My Moment

Every parent whose baby faces a life or death situation chooses a moment in the future to cling to.

Olivia was given a 30% chance of survival and a 90% chance of a major disability. I remembered having to bury my baby boy as my daughter still fought to survive. One day, my dad said to me, "Someday she will be running off the school bus with her friends." At first I was a little irritated (sorry, dad.) Did he not grasp the severity of the situation? I may not even get to take my baby girl home. . .let alone watch her go to school. There is a good chance she may not walk and if she did, it may be with assistance. But then. . .that became my "moment." It was the moment that I pictured in my mind as I saw my baby girl struggle for each breath. It gave me the hope that I desperately needed.




Someday this nightmare would end and she would be riding a school bus to school. And at that moment in the future I could say,"We made it!"

That moment came today, almost six years later.



To most people, this picture signifies the beginning of school, but to me it means so much more. It means that we beat the odds. It means she not only survived, but continues to thrive. It means we made it! It means that we WILL get through any challenges that lie ahead. It means I finally made it to the moment that I prayed for over and over again when she was a baby. Yes, I'm a proud mom of a kindergartner, but more than that. . .I'm a proud mom of an amazing girl named Olivia Paige, who said she loves kindergarten!



Jodi- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

I Have A Kindergartner!

Olivia started kindergarten today.  I’m doing better than I thought I would.  Praying she has a wonderful day. . .wonderful enough that she’ll want to come back again and again. 

She was actually very excited to go and to ride the bus.


She even showed off some superhero poses.  She is my superhero.

And took some pictures of her own to remember her special day.

She took pictures of me because, well, I guess it’s kinda my special day too.  I have a kindergartner! LOL!

Here she is waiting at the bus top.  We followed in the van to make sure she got settled in okay. 

No tears getting on the school bus which was huge!! Olivia didn’t even cry either. LOL!  I was so proud of her. 

And here she is in her classroom.  Right after this picture is when the tears started. . .my sweet girl.  The teacher came right over to her and seemed to do a great job of getting her engaged in something. We watched from the hall a bit and she wasn’t crying when we left.  Please pray for Olivia as she begins this new, important endeavor. 

BIG Day, BIG Girl

Tomorrow is the BIG day! My 1 lb 1.5 oz miracle starts kindergarten. My baby Abigail also turns 9 months old tomorrow and my niece turns 6 years old. BIG day. Praying for a very successful, amazing first day that will set the tone for the entire year. What a BIG girl she has become!





Jodi- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Letters

So, this is one reason I could never homeschool like some of you do so wonderfully.

We are brushing up on some skills before kindergarten. I have laminated letter cards and just wanted to double check to make sure Olivia knows all of her upper and lower case letters. It's a fight to get her to sit still and work on them. Then, when she does. . .she won't tell me the letters. For example, we get to J and she says:

Olivia: Its best friend is K. It's the first letter in mommy's name.

Me: And the letter is?

Olivia: P, M, R??

Or she will say a wrong letter and tell me that was her teddy bear's guess and not hers. Or she is pretending that she's two and doesn't know them. I'm pretty sure she knows them all, but I just want her to say the letter.




Then, I catch her putting them all in alphabetical order perfectly. She's got it. She just likes to keep me on my toes I guess.

Jodi- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone