Is It Really Thanksgiving?

Olivia turns one!

Oh my where has the time gone?  I hope that everyone had an wonderful Thanksgiving weekend.  The big question that was throw around this weekend was, "is it really Thanksgiving?"  The fall season has begun and we are enjoying each moment, as we realized it goes by so fast!  If I had to recap the fall in one sentence it would sound like this: We are thankful for the two front teeth Olivia has now, a happy healthy, 20 pound one year old, who has learned how to walk and talk, and blah blah

Since the last entry in September, we visited two farms, the Maryland Zoo, gone apple picking, traveled to Rochester,  traveled to Ocean City and spent time with the Wittmans,  grew two front teeth and have four more that are working their way through,  celebrated Halloween and a first birthday, started really talking, blowing kisses, giving kisses, and most importantly started walking! Of course and most recently, celebrated Thanksgiving!  Now do you understand our lack of attention to the blog?!

The following descriptions are in no particular order and are brief descriptions of our adventures! There are pictures on Picasa Web Albums that show off our events in more details, if you are more visual. 

Fall Festivities

Watch out sheep, here comes Olivia!

Olivia has always loved Hurley, but we recently discovered a love of all animals .  We went to Elioak Farm with friends in October and they have a petting area. She was enthralled with the animals!  She was practically crawling over the fence to get into the pen!  We also visited the Maryland Zoo on Friday after Thanksgiving and were able to walk around the petting area and she was trying to hug all the goats in the pen.  She was so excited and provided us with several laughs.

Chowing away on the apple

We also discovered another love of Olivia's, apples!  Tyler went along with us in October to Larriland Farm to pick apples from the orchard.  Olivia was in the stroller because she was not stead on her feet.  She was very interested in what we were doing.  Of course when you apple pick, you need to eat an apple.  She kept pointing at our apples,  so we found a baby like apple and bit off the skin, then handed it to her.  She was in her glory!  She gnawed on that apple the entire time we picked apples!  It was quite a sight to see.   We realized she prefers bigger bites of food.  Once in a while she will eat a bit that is too big, and she will spit it out. She is doing quite well I if I say so!

 Girls Weekend to Rochester   

The first weekend in October my Mom, Bethany, Kym, Olivia, and myself made the journey up to Rochester for a girls weekend, and to celebrate the baby shower of our good friend Amy Knight (Scata).   It was a bonding experiences for us and Olivia was a fabulous little traveler.   It was great to for her to meet her Uncle Ron, cousins Colin and Andy, and of course to see Greatest and Uncle Ken again.  She missed two naps, went to bed late both nights, was in the car seat for 17 hours and hardly complained!  The best part was on the way  home she sat and looked at her books by herself for more than a half an hour!  My mom would just give her an new book when she threw one on the seat!  The weekend was great and my sisters and mom were a great help with Olivia.  We missed Dan!  I think he enjoyed his bachelor time, but was ready for his girls to get home.   

All the Cousins Together

The Puryear, Wittman, Wambolt Cousin Photo Shoot

-The Girls-

As some of you know Jill and Steve Wittman, Dan's sister,  moved to Geneva, Switzerland for three years.  We miss them very much, but keep up with them using Skype!  Before they left, they spend some time in Maryland, visiting the siblings.  Steve flew to Geneva before the rest of the family, so Jill and her two girls, Emma and Ava, spend  time in Ocean City.  We visited them for the weekend.  The three girls together was so much fun!  The weather was lovely and we walked on the Boardwalk, went for two boat rides, and played outside.  The Boardwalk area in Ocean City has huge wooden play toys, which are great in the off season because they are not overrun by kids.  Emma and Olivia had the best time discovering, crawling, and running (well Emma ran), all over the toys.  Olivia loved the sand, of course, and this time was more mobile in the sand.  We had to keep an eye out for her because she kept trying to escape.  We also had two boat rides on the Cris Craft.  Olivia and Eva joined us for one and then Emma, Jill, Dan, Lee, and I went on a two hour tour for the second ride.  O and E were so cute in the over-sized life jackets.  The weekend was bittersweet because we had to say good-bye to the Wittmans. There are great pictures from the weekend and a cousin photo shoot on the photo link!  We are looking forward to seeing them at Christmas time.  I am sure we will have lots of good stories now that Olivia is walking and Ava is crawling!

 Teething

No longer a toothless grin, Olivia's bottom teeth came through at some point in the spring and her top two teeth broke through in the late summer, but it was mid-October they became cute little fixtures in pictures!  She is now cutting the top two "fang" teeth and the the bottom two as well.  I looked into her mouth the other day it the entire top of her mouth looked like it was white and swollen with tooth buds.  It must me awful, but she is holding on.  She loves the frozen teething rings.  Last week I discovered her fingers had scrap marks all over and I realized she was chewing her hands.  So I try to save  her fingers by handing over the Soothie things. It is a pacifier for infants because it has a place to put a finger in for a baby to suck on.  She LOVES to put her own finger in it and that has really saved her fingers. 

Talking and Talking

Talking up a storm!  I think her first official word was Daddy, but she had since learned, light, yes, mommy, Hurley (yes she says some of the word), cheese, please, and a few others I cannot think of now.  It is amazing that she can communicate with us, she can sign to us, but usually prefers to point at the object and make a little noise.  We are well trained and usually give her what she needs, but we always name the item.  I guess we should encourage her to sign or use her words more!

 Halloween Time

All bundled up ready to go outside!

We did celebrate Halloween with a party at our house, a Maryland tailgate, and good old fashioned trick or treating!  We usually have a Halloween party, and this year I think at one point there were more kids than adults! Olivia was a pumpkin and looked so cute.  We put the hat on her several times and she kept it on most of the nights.  We are a family were a pumpkin patch this year.  Not very creative, but the price was right.  Pumpkin carving was a family affair this year and Olivia like to put the top on her pumpkin and then take it off.  She sat in her highchair for quite a while, while we finished carving.  Tyler came over to trick or treat.  We went out for about forty five minutes and Olivia had a little stash of candy that Dan and I ate!  Next year will be fun because she will be able to really walk around and say,  "Trick or Treat!"

First Birthday Celebrations

Our little one year old!

Just dive right in!

Finally, she turned one!  We had two birthday bashes, lots of cake, and plenty of gifts!  My parents and Grandma Mary Lou came over for a birthday dinner on Monday, her actual birthday.  We dressed her up in tutu and matching pink sparkly tights.  She looked like a little princess.  My favorite part of the evening was the smash cake!  We sang to her and put down a little cake.  She had not trouble putting her hands right into it and licking it all up!  At one point she just put her face right into the cake!  We all had a good laugh, and then we opened presents.  She received a few gifts from Tyler, Grandma, and Grandpa, and a few from friends who could not make the party on Saturday.  The best toy gift was the walking toy from Skylar and Bryce.  That was the catalyst in giving her the confidence to take her first steps!  The evening flew by and soon it was bed time.  Dan and I can hardly believe we have made it a year with a child!  Our life is drastically changed, but we cant remember not having her in our lives! 

We had huge bash on Saturday for Olivia. The theme was pink and the number 1! We served chili, bread, some appetizers, and of course cake!  There were about 25 people who came to celebrate and it was a tight fit for a while, but well worth the closeness!  She received so many gifts and had some help from Brooke to open them all!  We played a few games, but the most fun was that smash cake!  We felt so blessed to have the love and support from our family and friends on her Birthday and throughout the year! As people started to leave the party, Olivia climbed up the stairs and went into her bedroom, pulling her blanket from crib and laying down on her rug in her room.  So I put her into bed, exhausted by the day, she slept for a little while!  The day was certainly memorable!

 Walking and Other Developments

As I close this LONG and DETAILED entry, I must add I am astonished how quickly she develops a skill!  Take walking for example, she was cruising for weeks,  then on Saturday (November 20th) she was walking around the living room table and stopped.  With a second thought she let go, and started walking towards the dinning room where we were sitting.  She stopped half way to clapped, then continued on towards her toy!  I was crying and I realized she is a little girl now!   Now she has taken off!  She walks/totters/falls everywhere, and has even started to climb!  She has been clapping for months, but waving bye bye, blowing kisses, and giving kisses, just started happening before her first birthday.   It is like one day in her brain, things start to click and she can do all the new tricks we have been encouraging her to do all along! 

So our live is a whole new crazy now, keeping up with her!  We absolutely LOVE it and cannot ask for anything more! 

10 Things That Make Us Smile in the 10th Month

Olivia has developed quite a personality over the past few months!  She brings a smile to our faces daily, and too many times we laugh out loud!  One of the comments we tell her daily is, "I don't think you can be any cuter!"  We thought we would share some of the ten things she does that makes us smile! We hope this will share some joy to you too!

The list is in no particular order:

1. Group Hug

Recently when holding Olivia, we will encourage her to have a group hug.  She caught on to it and now will lean in towards Dan or myself and we have to say, "yeah, group hug!"  She smiles and seems so happy with herself! 

She was in the process of yelling, "OOH"

2. OOH
This is Olivia's favorite word!  Whenever something is interesting to her she yells out "OOH."  When Hurley walks into the room, she yells, "OOH."  If she discovers something new, she yells, "OOH!" You get the idea.

3. Outside Voice being used inside

We are not sure where she gets her loudness from, certainly not me! (haha).  At times Olivia is so loud.  She will be in her car seat and let out a loud yell.  She will be playing with her toys and suddenly be babbling, followed by a loud yell.  Often when we put her in the high chair and walk to the kitchen to get her toy she will scream to us!  We laugh, but tell her that is an outside voice Olivia.  We are hoping that she will soon understand to use that yell outside.  We will have to see about that! haha

Wait for me!

4. Following us from room to room
Now that she has mastered crawling, she is all over the place!  We will put her down in the living room and walk into the kitchen.  Following behind, you guessed it Olivia.  It is so cute because when you look down it is this little person making her way across the room.  My favorite is when she crawls up to us and reaches up for us to pick her up!  It melts my heart!
5. Cuddling with her blanket 
Now that we are back at school, we have to go in and get her earlier than we were this summer.  This summer it would be after 7:00 before we went in to get her.  Now it is before 7:00.  She is very much like Dan and needs some time to wake up.  The past week or so,  in the morning, I will pick her up and she immediately grabs her blanket and has to cuddle with it and suck her thumb while I change her diaper and dress her.  Often she will take the blanket with her while she nurses too!  She just loves that blanket!  At night I cuddle with her after book and prayers with the blanket and she lays there, sucking her thumb. 

6. Greeting us after naps, sitting up in her crib, playing
We do not rush in to the room when she wakes up from naps, giving her a few minutes to wake up.  When we do go in the room, she is often found sitting up, "playing jail", shaking herself back and forth on the crib railings.  As soon as she sees us she lets out a huge yell that often sounds like "Hi!"

7. The grumpy, angry, hungry cry, that resembles her mother's hunger cry!

If you do not know I like to eat, and so does Olivia.  I also get kinda grumpy when I am hungry.  Dan discovered this trait during our 2008 trip out west, and has become a running joke with Dan and I. We think Livy has the same irritation when she is hungry because around 5:30pm, her dinner time, she gets very grumpy and often will just start to cry.  There have been several nights Dan will be feeding her while she is crying and opening her mouth for more food!  She will finally quite down after some food.  The scene is pretty hilarious.  Dan is so patient with her when she is that upset too!

Kicking the waves in Ocean City

8. Her love of water

It does not matter what it is, the ocean, pool, bathtub, kiddie pool, or Hurley's water, she will play in it and love every minute.  She loves to kick in the water, drink the water, and splash and splash.  

9. Her reaction to other kids, especially Tyler 

Olivia is thrilled to be back at daycare because of all the other kids.  The moment we drop her off in the morning she is looking around Ms. Sharon's for which kids are there already.  She follows the bigger kids around too.  The family member who earns the biggest smiles is Tyler!  Her entire face lights up. She also loves Brayden.  Last weekend at his house he started laughing at a toy and she immediately started to giggle too.  He would laugh again and so would she.  It was adorable. 
10. The way any kind of music makes her bob her head and clap her hands
Finally, a lesson we can take away and apply to our own lives is a ten month olds love of music, especially Olivia.  She has a music table she is borrowing from Gram, and she is obsessed with it.  We put her down and she heads straight for the table.  She will bounce her head and clap her hands! Often a song will come on the radio and she will bounce her entire body to the beat.  My favorite happens when the TV is on...I will be nursing her in the morning and the Today Show theme will start.  Shes will stop nursing and look towards the TV, smile, and clap her hands.  I laugh every morning because of her!  So the next time you hear music think of our baby bouncing to the beat!

We hope you enjoyed the list of ten things that make us smile!  Life with Olivia has flown and we look forward to what else will be added to this list!

Summer of 2010 Wrap Up

Our little family during the trip to Myrtle Beach

As our tan lines fad and the school year begins, we remember what an amazing summer it was!  Since our last blog, Olivia has been non-stop!  She started army crawling in late July and has since mastered the fine art of crawling by the middle of August.  Now as she nears ten and a half months she is pulling up on everything!  Before we get ahead of ourselves here is the recap of our Myrtle Beach trip, her nine month doctors appointment, and all of our August travels!

Olivia had her nine month check up before we left for our beach vacation.  She continues to grow and be healthy!  She weighed 17 pounds and 12 ounces, putting her into the 34th percentile for weight.  Her height was 28.5 inches, falling into the 83rd percentile!  She is a long and skinny baby! The doctor said everything looked good and her ear infection from last month was all cleared up.  She cried a little for the shot, but otherwise was a perfect baby. 

Three Generations!

The last week in July brought us a beach trip with my mom, Tyler,  and Greatest to Myrtle Beach, SC.  The trip down was uneventful and long.  Olivia did well in the car, but became a little fussy towards the end...we all were though!  The week long vacation was restful and I know that Greatest loved spending the time with two of her great-grand kids! Each day we had to make the tough choice of going to the beach or the pool.  A few days we did one in the morning and the other in the afternoon (tough life I know)!  The last morning we went for a walk on the beach before the crowds hit and it was beautiful.  Of course Livy loved the beach and this time was more interested in the waves crashing on her!  At one point a wave crashed right up to her face and after the initial shock wore off she started laughing and clapping! Dan and I were able to head out for a dinner one night and Greatest treated us to dinner another.  We missed my dad and sisters, but it was a fun family vacation. 

Tyler and Olivia on our final day in Myrtle Beach

We had two weddings the first two weeks of August, so we left MB on Thursday.  The drive home was quite eventful though, and it was a good thing my mom decided to leave with us!  We left around four and stopped for dinner around five, and continued driving.   I was growing tired and we decided to switch drivers.  Dan was on the road for about twenty minutes and he ran over a huge pipe in the road, slicing our tire (yes our brand new tire).  We quickly pulled off the road to investigate the damage.   I previously failed to mention it was about nine thirty at night and pouring down rain!  So on the side of I95 in the middle of a thunderstorm we, and by we I mean Dan, changed the flat tire and drove the rest of the trip on our spare tire.  That added an extra hour to the trip! To top it all off...we were caught speeding by a speed camera at  2:30 am and got a ticket in the mail a few weeks ago!  $150 dollars, plus $200 for the new tire...it was an expensive ride home! I feel very blessed we got home safe and Olivia did not cry at all during the whole tire incident.

The Wambolt Cousins with Olivia

As I previously mentioned, we had two weddings on back to back weekends in August.  Both weddings were in New York and it was easier to leave Olivia in Maryland while we made the trips up on Saturday morning and home on Sunday.   First wedding was Beth and Oliver's in Binghamton.  For this wedding Olivia stayed at Grandma, Grandpa, and Tyler's house.  The second wedding was Shannon and Scott's in Jamestown.  We dropped Livy off at Aunt Carol and Uncle Scott's house to be watched by Gram, Grandpa, and Brayden, because Blake Lee Wambolt was born on August 13th! While Carol rested and recovered in the hospital, Olivia played with Brayden at his house.  Everyone had a blast and I know Gram loved playing with the grand kids. We feel very lucky to have such a supportive family to leave our daughter with! 

We were very busy in August and even made a final trip to Ocean City before school started.  Olivia spent three days on the beach and even had her Scopes taken on the beach!  She took short naps on the beach, so when we dropped her off for day care on Tuesday she was a little over tired.  Oh well she had a blast with Ms. Sharon and the other kids!

As the summer fades to fall and Olivia re-adjusts to day care and us to school.  Her first summer was a memorable one and I look forward to what is ahead!

My first summer

The Balash Family

Emme and Livy wearing their matching dresses!

Jenn, Brian, Ryker, and Emersen came to visit on July 18th!  We were so excited they were visiting because Emersen and Olivia are three month apart and had not met each other yet.  Plus we have not seen Ryker in almost a year!  We were a little worried about how they would sleep since our house a little, but it worked extremely well.  After running into traffic in Virgina, they arrived with two passed out kids around 10:30p.m.  We were happily waiting with beers and smiles.

Yup-That is Jenn, Brian, and Laura!

On Monday we decided to visit the Maryland Zoo. The day was extremely hot and we were all a bit sweaty!  However the big kids managed to have a fun time at the zoo! The kids were wonderful and enjoyed the animals.  Ryker had a blast running from animal cage to animal cage.  I think his favorite part was either the giant slide or the train that drives through the zoo.  Emme was a precious baby and slept the first half of the visit.  The just hung out in the stroller watching the world go by! Olivia was extra cute this trip. We have taken two other trips, but this time she was able to see the animals and she loved the ducks the best.   In the afternoon we hung out and had a little happy hour!  Of course that evening, as the kids were passed out, we had to watch The Bachlorette.  I think that was Brian and Dan's favorite part of the day!

Kiddie Pool Fun with Ryker

Tuesday brought another hot day and we decided to have a water fun day in the backyard.  We played in the kiddie pool and had some sprinkler fun!  Tyler, my mom, and Kym visited for a bit and Ryker was all about playing with Tyler.  Brian was even able to stay cool with a little head dunk in the sprinkler.  Emme and Olivia had some time together in the pool, kicking around and laying on their stomachs. 

After a nice afternoon nap, we left to play at a local playground.   Again Ryker had a blast with the steering wheel, the slides, and running all around.  The girls went down a few slides, but they were not as active as Ryker.  On the way home we picked up some dinner.  During dinner,  Jenn and Brian decided that it was best to leave that evening and travel home while the kids were sleeping.  So we sadly helped them back up and they left on Tuesday night.

The three buddies and Grandma helping out too.

We have such a great time hanging out...if only we lived closer!

Beach Weekend in July

Loves the water and the sand!

Olivia fourth trip to the beach was quite the eventful one.  She had so many adventures I am not sure where to begin!  We arrived on Thursday and after a quick afternoon nap we headed over to the pool down the street from the Puryears.  Once again I forgot my camera, but Olivia adores the pool.  She loves to kick on her stomach and lay on her back.  We even went  under the water several times with her.  She is quickly turning into our little water baby! 

She kept licking the life jacket when it was on.

On Friday Livy had another first~she took her first boat ride.  Lee took us on a boat ride for over an hour. Olivia really seemed to like it.  She had a hard time keeping her eyes open when the boat was moving fast, so we turned her away from the wind and she wanted to touch the water in the back of the boat.  The life jacket was not her favorite because it did not fit perfectly, but she will have to get use to it!  We look forward to many more boat rides in the future.   That evening we also went out for an all you can eat crab feast!  We started dinner on the earlier side, so that hopefully Livy would last until we were done eating.  She was a little angel.  We were seated by the waiters station and she watch all the waiters walk back and forth, smiling and watching them all.  She was very interested in the food we were eating, so we gave  her corn off the cob to eat.  She was entertained by that too.  We all had plenty to eat and she did not even fuss!  It was a lot of fun and great to know she was content to sit in the high chair for over an hour.  

Hurley wanted in on the toy action!

Saturday was another adventure!  The plan was to wake up, eat breakfast, and head to the beach for as long as Olivia would last.  We packed up the car, the two beach bags, and headed out the door about nine o'clock.  As we pulled out of Ocean Pines the skies did not look so great, but we drove on.  When we arrived at the beach, Livy had fallen asleep in her car seat and the skies were dark.  We called back to the Puryears and talked to Laura, who informed us that it was raining back in Ocean Pines.  We decided to sit in the car for a few minutes to let her finish her nap and see if it would pass us by.  It held off until she woke up and we ran out to the beach for twenty minutes before the skies unleashed.  It ended up raining all day :(  So our plan was foiled.  The back up plan?  Head to the Outlets!  Jean babysat Olivia while we went out shopping with Laura.  Then we played some games that afternoon/evening.  It was another eventful day...just stunk that it rained.

Family photo opt down by the surf

When we woke up on Sunday the sun was shining and it was time to try the beach again.  We let Olivia take her morning nap at home and as soon as she awoke we were off to the beach!  We set up camp and were in the for long haul.  Olivia enjoyed playing with the water so much we had to fill it with fresh water because I was afraid she would get sick.  She splashed, knocked over, and dug in the water.  When she ate the sand too much we had to put her on a towel.  We did take her down to the water and really put her in the surf.  She LOVED it!  She was laughing and having a great time.  We definitely have a little beach bum in the works!  She then finished her bottle and ate some pears.  About one o'clock she was pretty exhausted so we crossed our fingers that she would sleep on the beach.  I held her until she was almost asleep and then we put in under the cabana and laid next to her.  We did have to soother her once when a loud person talking walked by and scared her.  It worked perfectly and she slept for a little over an hour!  YEAH! She also took her three o'clock bottle on the beach.  Life is good when you spend a day on the beach.  Dan and I were delighted that we have a little beach baby!

The weekend was wonderful and we were sad to leave.  We look forward to seeing Gram and Grandpa Puryear in a few weeks and heading back to the beach in August before school starts again!

Fourth of July 2010

Can I have that toy Grumpa?

Fourth of July weekend was a real bang this year! We hosted a impromptu Happy Hour with my parents, Tyler,  and Laura, the Original. The weather was beautiful and we hung outside in the backyard.  Olivia loved playing with all the guests, especially crawling all over Grumpa! She even ate her dinner in her highchair in the back porch.  Laura hung out for a while and played Rock Band that night.  It is great to be able to hang out even after Livy is in bed.  Dan is excited that even though he has a child he can still play video games! haha

Playing with Monica

On Saturday we had more guests over to celebrate.  Our friends Monica and Rob came over for a cookout/game night.  We roped them into walking up to the Catonsville Parade.  We are usually in Ocean City for the 4th and this year I really wanted to see the yearly parade that runs through our town.  So we walked the mile and a half to the parade route in the sweltering heat, watch the parade for about half an hour, then marched back the mile and a half!  Needless to say we were all hot and ready for a nice cold beverage and appetizers by the time we came home from the adventure!  I was really happy to see the parade and Olivia was wonderful!  She loved watching all the people and did not cry at all when the loud fire trucks drove by, sirens on.  Later that night we played several games and enjoyed the company.  It was great to spend time Monica and Rob before their wedding on July 16th.  As they left for the night we did walk out to the front yard and watch some of the Catonsville fireworks.  We are hoping that next year Olivia will be ready to stay up until ten to see fireworks. 

The cousins in the matching shirts.

The weekend came to an exciting close at my parents house on Sunday, the fourth.  First we had to have a photo shoot because Olivia and Tyler had on thier matching Old Navy shirts.  We had a ton of outtakes, but were able to keep a few good pictures.  I hope that the t-shirt thing will become a tradition, but we were all saying that Tyler will probably not want to match next year.  We had a cookout over there too and two special guests stopped by.  Blair and Gayle joined us for an afternoon play date!  Blair is six weeks older than Livy and the two of them were hilarious to watch. Olivia would be holding a toy and then Blair would reach out to grab it from her.  Blair would hold onto the toy for a few minutes then Olivia would grab it from her hands.  It was adorable.  We love getting together with Gayle and we are hoping to see them again soon. 

It was quite the busy weekend and so much fun with all the family and friends to celebrate. 

Playground Visit

Slowing, slowing, going down the slide

Climbing the rock wall

Olivia is a very observant child and loves daycare because she can watch all the kids play and Miss Sharon takes her outside and on trips daily.  Knowing she is an active child, we try to take her out of the house daily for some kind of activity.  Last week we took walks at parks, when it was over a hundred degrees we went to the mall, and the other day we visited the Meadowbrooke playground for her first trip to a playground.  I thought there would be swings, but there were not any so we made do with what they had!  So we started by walking the path around the playground and then we tried to play as much as we could.  I honestly think she had more fun watching all the kids running around!  She tired several slides, the rock climbing wall, the bridges, and her favorite the mirrored wall.  We set her down in front of it and she laughed and laughed at herself!  It was quite adorable!  Here are some of the hightlights:

oh yes, a mirror to check myself out in!

How can I do this myself?

After the playground we decided to grab something for dinner quickly and Red Robin was the perfect place.  This was our first dinner outing in several months and Olivia was wonderful.  She sat in the highchair and was fascinated by everything around her!   The Red Robin bird was visiting that night and she watch him walk all around the restaurant.  It was quite funny!

It was a fun little day and while I LOVE this stage, I do look forward to when she can run around the playground!

First Ear Infection and Pink Eye--Oh My!

What a beginning to the summer! The first week was great!  We basically hung out at home, going for walks, "swimming" the kiddie pool, and playing with all the Olivia's toys!  It was a nice relaxing start.  Finally on Sunday though we were ready to get out of the house, so Dan and I decided to head to see a movie with our friends Courtney and Kris.  Aunt Bethany was available to babysit and that was a huge help.

When we returned from the movie Miss Olivia was all happy and smiles, but we noticed greenish goop coming out from her eyes.  This happened before around Christmas time and the doctor explained it was probably because of her blocked tear duct she had at birth.  We did not think much of it and had a nice afternoon hanging out with Bethany, Courtney, and Kris.  About 4:00 she became fussy and nothing really made her happy unless she was being held.  We figured she was tired and missing her cat nap she usually takes in the car on the way home from school.  Well the little fussiness became full blown cries about 5:00 and we figured she was exhausted.   Usually when she is tired she can be consoled and cuddled, but this was different she was crying continuously.    We put her to bed around 6:00, assuming she would wake up.  She did not wake up and was a happy little girl in the morning and the green goop disappeared.  I called the doctor anyway in the morning. The office recommended I bring her in to get checked out.  As soon as Dr. Landcaster saw her she said, "Usually pink eye comes from an ear infection."  Sure enough she had an ear infection in her left ear and pink eye in her left eye.  So to the pharmacy we went to pick up her antibiotics.

Dan and I were laughing because she was in day care with other kids for months and the same week she is home with us she had her first illness.  I was glad she lasted almost eight moths!  I think it is all that milk I am feeding her, filled with antibodies!  haha

She is doing well now and is taking the medicine with out much of a fight! 

The Top Ten List of Months Six and Seven

Wow What a couple of months it has been!  We are finally done with the school year after a very extended length of time, and now it is time to kick back, relax, and enjoy our time with each other!  We have very few plans for the summer.  A couple weeks at the beach and some tutoring dates sum it up.  We look forward to many more updates this summer with our free time!

So much has happened in the life of Olivia Grace! I thought making a Top Ten List would help sum of the changes, firsts, and growth that has happened in the past six weeks! Here we go:

1. Olivia is rolling over officially!

She is starting to become our little mover.  She loves to sleep on her stomach now and is starting the army crawl in a 360 motion!  

2. She is eating solid foods three times a day!

We have only found a few foods she dislikes and that includes peas and any mixed veggies.  Her favorites include carrots, green beans, pears, and peaches! I tried to make my own food, but she did not like my carrots.  Then we became so busy I put it on hold until this summer.  So look out Olivia I am starting to make it again!

3. Olivia spend three days with Gram Puryear while mommy and daddy were at Outdoor Ed!

It was the first time away from Olivia, but she was in good hands.  Jean came and stayed with Olivia and what adventures they had!  "Olivia" created a whole journal of the time we were apart. They went out to lunch and a trip to the store topped the list.  Gram and Olivia left early on Friday and Dan and I met them at the beach that afternoon.  We missed her terribly and was so happy to see that smiling face again.  It was great though that Olivia could spend time with Gram, I know Gram had a blast with her granddaughter. 

4. Olivia had her first trip to the beach and loved the sand and water! 
Did we have any doubt since she is our child, but she visited the beach on Memorial Day weekend and she loved it! She sat in the sand and ran it though her fingers for a while.  Then figured out she could put it in her mouth.  We moved her to the center of a blanket at that point!  She loved the water too, especially knocking over the buckets we would bring to her.  The nap was not successful, but we will try again.  We have all summer to figure out how to get her to sleep under the pop up tent!

5. Another weekend she spend a whole weekend with Daddy alone while mommy was away!
The weekend of June 18th, I had a bridal shower/bachlorette party for my friend Shannon. So I headed out for NY early Saturday morning and Dan had Olivia all to himself for a day and a half!  Dan and Olivia played in the pool, read books, played with Hurley and hung out with Aunt Laura. 
I was sent text message updates and missed her so much.  I had a blast in NY though and it was nice to see the Keuka Soccer girls again. Dan is such an amazing father and it is fabulous that he spends time with her!

6. Now she holds her own bottle! 
Well the other day I tried to nurse Olivia before she went to bed, but she was having nothing of nursing! So we heated up a bottle for her and sure enough she laid on the bed and sucked the bottle down, holding it herself the entire time!  When she was with Dan he also made the comment that she likes to hold it for herself and on Saturday night she would only drink it on the changing table.  So our baby is becoming so independent.   It is very adorable to see her lay there feeding herself.  

7. She can sit up all by herself!
Shortly after she turned six and a half months, she was sitting by herself.  It was a Monday and usually we set her down on the floor to play, propped up with something.  For several weeks she was sitting by her self for a few seconds.  On this Monday in May,  I was sitting behind her and I realized she was sitting by herself for more than a few seconds!  The seconds became minutes and we realized she reached the sitting milestone! Since then she prefers sitting up to play, and watch what is going on around her.  There have been an occasional bumps and knocks by Hurley, but she rebalanced herself and stays upright.  The few times she has fallen over she clap and shout "yeah!"

8. Is always babbling, screaming, and laughing.

"DADADADA"  "BABABABAB"  "ABABABAB" and various others can be heard thought the house and car! Just this morning it sounded like she did say "MAMA," but we will see.  She is so loud though.  (I have no idea where she gets that from!) Just laughing, screaming, and babbling.  It is so much fun to listen to her talk! 

9. She attended several parties! 
The Spring time and especially the end of the year brings many parties!  Olivia attended several this spring, including Monica's Bridal Shower that was at our house, Kate's graduation party, two retirement parties, and the end of the year annual happy hour!  She was an angel at all and let anyone hold her.  She smiled at everyone and loved every second of the new faces.  We feel so lucky because we can take her places and she does not have the stranger anxiety.  She is also a good little adjuster too  She will roll with the new places, eat her food, and fall asleep easily on the way home.  We just have to hold her for a few minutes when we get home and put her in the crib.  Dan and I had the whole party system down cold.  We knew exactly when it was time to leave!  I know you are surprised we have a child that loves to hang out and party!

10. Finally, cut  two bottom teeth break through!  
 After many months of drool and endless items in her mouth, Olivia cut her two bottom teeth!  The left arrived first around June 14th and the right bottom arrived a few days later.  She was a trooper!  She was not sleeping as well, but stayed a happy baby.  I was waiting every night for her to cry out in pain, but it never happened.  We lucked out with the bottom.  She is very protective though and will not let us near those new teeth!  We can tell now that the top are making there way next.  The toothless grin is soon to be no more!

Well this pretty much sums up the events of the past six weeks!  It was an extremely busy months of May and June.  There are over a hundred pictures on the Picasa Web Album, including the beach trip and out pool time!  Please feel free to link to those on the right column.  

We promise to update sooner!  

Love to you all

Six Months Old

We can hardly believe that Olivia has been in our lives for half a year already!  The time has flown by and we continue to treasure each moment!  We had a doctors appointment on Tuesday and after a very LONG wait we discovered Olivia has grown an inch and a half to 26.5 inches long and has gained almost three pounds!  She now weighs 15 pounds and 9 ounces! Her height puts her in the 77th percentile and 43rd percentile for weight.  The doctor said she is growing well and should start trying real food.  Our plan is to make our own food and then freeze it for the week.  To be honest, I have bought some Gerber green beans so we will see how this goes!  Dr. Landcaster said that now her food is just to experiment with and learn to eat different textures.  Most of her nutrients will still come from milk.  We are excited to try out some new foods. 

On her six month birthday, May 1st, we had quite an eventful day.   At Noon, we scheduled a photo shoot at Target for her milestone pictures.  She was wonderful and charming, and the Target staff worked patiently and efficiently!  The pictures turned out beautifully and we will be able to pick them up next weekend!  Our next stop, to pick up Tyler and Aunt Laura and head to the Maryland Zoo! 
 
We arrived at the Zoo around 2:45 and the zoo closed at 4:00, so we knew we had to hurry through the park.  We started in the Children section, which was adorable and Tyler had a blast!  This trip was much more eventful than our first trip.  The crowd was minimal, and the animals were out and playing!  Of course I forgot to grab the camera so we missed out on great photo opportunities...oh well I am sure that will not be the first time.  The animals we saw included, the cutest otter doing back flips off a rock, snakes slithering, bats flying, penguins swimming, a camel giving rides, polar bears,  giant tortoises eating grass, lazy cheetahs, and ravens.  The most exciting part of the day was when a monkey went a little crazy!  We were standing by the outdoor monkey area and one of the monkeys came over to place we were standing, turned towards us and sat down.  It was cute, but suddenly he freaked out!  He picked up a huge water container, dumped it out, and threw it at the plastic viewing area.  Then he jumped up and kicked the plastic area.  The four of us jumped back, surprised and a little scared.  I have never seen a monkey act that way and it was pretty intense.  Tyler claimed that he had anger issues!  It was quite an eventful day at the zoo and we love that we only need to use the pass one more time and we have paid off the pass!  I am certain we will return soon.

On Sunday of her six month birthday weekend,  it was my mom's birthday.  The entire family drove out to Harper's Ferry in western Maryland to hike and walk around the historic town.  While we were getting ready, Tyler kept Olivia occupied by playing and reading to her.  We had some very cute pictures of the two of them!  The day was enjoyable and felt like the summer with the temperatures in the 90s!  Olivia was a great little girl, sleeping for about 45 minutes on the way to Harpers Ferry.  She ate when we arrived and then sat in her stroller for most of the time.  She was such a great baby.  By 12:30 she was growing tired and we were all hungry.  So we headed back to the car and across the street for a picnic lunch.  I put Livy in her car seat and she was asleep in a matter of five minutes!  While we ate lunch we kept her in the car with the windows rolled down and ate lunch about 100 yards away.    After the bugs ran us out of the area, we headed back to Mom and Dad's for presents and dinner.   The day was fabulous and I know my mom had a great birthday! 

She had quite a busy weekend, but she continued to sleep well at Ms. Sharon's house.  It was a very summer like week, so they headed to the park most mornings.  Olivia slept in the stroller while the other kids ran around.  She watches those kids so closely and cannot wait to run around with them.  Next fall I am sure she will be close to giving them a run for their money! 

Tomorrow is Mother's Day and I am excited to celebrate my first official day! 
Love to all~

Baptism

"A child is a precious gift from God

And baptism is God's gift wrapping"

Olivia's Baptism was a weekend event, starting on Friday night by prepping food at our house, and continued on Saturday with more food prep at my parents house! Since their house is bigger and closer to church we decided to have the brunch at my parent's house on Sunday.  I am not sure if Olivia was aware of what was happening, but she did wake up at 5:30 am on Sunday morning.  This was not in the plan.  Although, as we are finding out with kids it is important to roll with what happens...so we rolled!

In recent weeks Livy has become quite the little church girl, sitting quietly on our laps, playing with toys.  We were all excited thinking that she would be awake and alert for her baptism.  Well, since she woke up at 5:30, she was ready for her nap right as church started!  The service progressed and Olivia's eye lids become heavier and heavier.  Surrounded by family and close friends, she fell asleep in my arms!

As Pastor Andy called us forward for the baptism, she slept on.  As the two other little girls babbled on next to her, she slept on.  As the congregation announced their support for the three girls, she slept on.  And finally, it was her turn to be baptized.   Pastor Andy looked her, looked at me, and said, "She she really sleeping?"  I nodded.  He asked, "do you want to just hold her."  I replied, happily, "yes!"  With her in my arms, fast asleep, she was baptized with water poured on her head three times, in the name of the father, in the name of the son, and in the name of the holy spirit.  She slept on!  With tears in my eyes, we stepped back away to the rest of the group and the baptism ceremony came to a close.  It was a proud moment as a parent.  A journey that was so challenging for us was now gift wrapped as she become baptized! 

Then it was time to celebrate with our family and friends! Lynda and Jeremy Celmer, Lauren and Kevin Bauer, and Kelly Rogers were a huge help by leaving church early to start the coffee and put the egg dishes in the oven to warm up.  When we returned home the food was ready to eat!   The brunch menu included egg dishes, french toast casserole, bagels and muffins, egg salad and tuna sandwiches, fruit salad, and caesar salad.  Our theme was flowers and my sister Bethany did an outstanding job creating the centerpieces for the celebration!  The food was delicious and the company was even better!  Olivia was a little angel and even posed with each family to take pictures.  We then opened presents and then ate the fabulous cake.   

We wrapped up the party about 1:00pm and Olivia, exhausted, went down for a nap. She looked adorable in her little dress and had quite a model shoot before church.  The entire day was memorable and we felt so blessed to have an amazing family and close friends help us celebrate her baptism! For more pictures check out the online album!

We love you little Livy Loo!

Spring Break Ohio Trip

This year was a different kind of Spring Break!  Last year during Spring Break I was 8 weeks pregnant and we were down in Orlando, Florida.  The whole trip Olivia was the size of a kumquat, so we called her our little kumquat all week!    

Present day, we have the joy of that little kumquat and we had a blast with her!  On Wednesday early morning, 1:30 am, we left for Cincinnati, Ohio.  Olivia was the perfect little traveler and when I picked her up and put her in her car seat she smiled at me, took her pacifier, and fell back to sleep!  We did not hear from her in the back seat until 6:00 am.  We the stopped for breakfast at 7:30 and gave her a bottle!  She was happy and smiling at everyone during breakfast!  We had about 2.5 hours to go, so I sat in the backseat with her, reading books and playing her toys!  About 9:00 am she became fussy.  I moved back to the front and she feel asleep, taking her morning nap!  It was delightful trip and driving through the night was not that bad!  Dan slept while I drove and I passed out when he took over the driving at 4:00am! 

More importantly though, we arrived at Jill and Steve's house around 10:30 and were greeted by Jill,  Miss Emma and our new niece Ava!  Steve was away on business, so we were ready to give Jill a helping hand!  It was a very warm day, so we hung around the house and played with Emma and Ava!  Olivia loved watching Emma run around and play.  After a bit of a home improvement conflict, we cooked dinner for the Wittmans and enjoy some wine!  We had a relaxing evening and went to bed on the early side!

The next day, Thursday, Steve arrived home from his trip around noon.  So we hung out that morning and then Jill made a delicious pizza for lunch!  When Steve arrived home we sat around and chatted for a while and decided to walk around Hyde Park.   It was about this time that Jill and Steve revealed to us they are making a Surf and Turf dinner to celebrate my 30th birthday! After the kids were down in bed, the adults had time to play!  We had a fabulous dinner and a memorable evening!  Poor Jill was a trooper and stayed up with us.  I remember clearly the night feedings and not having a full nights sleep!  However, Jill was great and we were so happy to hang out with her! Later in the evening decided to watch Lost, but Jill fell asleep, holding hands with Ava.  It was adorable! 

Our final day in Cincy, was Ava's 1 month check up. So we hung around in the morning and in the afternoon had a picnic and hiking trip.  We picked up yummy Dewy's Pizza and the hiked about a mile in a local park.   We all enjoyed being outside and Emma was the best little walker on the hike!  Dan and I decided to leave Ohio around Olivia's bed time because it was be easy to get home and put her in her crib.  So we sadly said good bye after Olivia ate dinner and headed back to Maryland.  Again, Olivia was a great little traveler and when we got home around 2:30 am I took her out of the car seat, swaddled her up and put her in her crib.  She fell right back to sleep and we heard from her about 7 am. 

We had a great visit in Ohio and I look forward to Olivia being able to run around with Emma and Ava! She is so lucky to have cousins close to her age!


There are more pictures on online album of all three girls!
Thanks for having us, Jill, Steve, Emma, and Ava...we had so much fun!

Maryland Zoo and Easter Too

To start our Spring Break we decided to spend Friday morning at the Maryland Zoo with my mom, grandma (Olivia's Greatest), and Tyler.  The line for the zoo was insane and we waited in the line to get in for 40 minutes!  We enjoyed people watching and discovered that members have their own entrance to the zoo!  So we decided that the cost was worth it and we bought a year long pass to the zoo!  We also put down that we have 2 kids and we will always be able to bring a guest!  So who wants to hit the zoo with us!?

When we finally were able to enter the zoo we started at the Polar Bear exhibit and it was around 11:30, Olivia's feeding time.  So we found a shadowy spot and started to give her the bottle, but she was too distracted and ate only half the bottle.  Figuring she would be a mess and starving in half an hour, we ventured on to the Africa section.  Greatest and my mom hung back and Tyler, Dan, Olivia and I walked ahead to view the lions, tigers, giraffes, monkeys, and penguins.  We had Olivia in the stroller and it was around the penguins that she started to fall asleep in the stroller.  We were very impressed because she missed her morning nap and she hardly cried at all!  We looked down and she was out! We decided at that moment it was time to make our way back.  Plus Greatest was done walking around too.  My favorite part of the zoo trip was the giraffes because that was the one animal that we could see up close and personally!  Dan's favorite part was the penguins because several did a belly flop right into the water and they were hysterical to watch! I know the next time Tyler wants to bring $2 to feed the giraffes!  We will have plenty of time for that since we plan on going to the zoo several times in the next year.  Next time we visit we plan to head over to the petting zoo part.  I know Olivia will love that part!

This weekend was also Easter.  In the morning we found a basket left on our table from the Easter Bunny, but we waited to open the basket until after church at my parents house.  We attended the 9:30 church service, sitting next to Greatest!  Olivia had another successful week at church, sitting through the whole service!  She loved sitting next to Greatest and trying to grab her nose and glasses.  When we went to the front for communion, she received all kinds of compliments and oohs! 

When we arrived at my parents house a note was on the door that there 50 eggs in the backyard for Tyler, Shayla, and Olivia to find!  So Olivia had her first Easter Egg Hunt and she was able to find two eggs!  She enjoyed eating the plastic egg more than the candy inside!  We had an enjoyable day with the family and Olivia took a two hour nap at my parents house! 

She also opened her two Easter Baskets!  She was spoiled with a bunny, two outfits, and book from Gram and Grandpa Puryear.  The other basket had a fun ball toy and bubbles! 

It was a memorable first Easter and I think we wore that little girl out!  Today she took a 2 hour and 10 minute nap and an  hour and a half nap.  Hopefully she will catch up on that sleep because tomorrow night/Wednesday morning at 1:30 we are leaving for Ohio to visit Jill, Steve, Emma, and Ava. 

Hope you are all had an loving Easter!
love
Laura, Dan, and Olivia

Cereal Time

Olivia turned 5 months on April 1st, so on Monday March 29th, we decided it was time to start feeding her cereal.  Our first indication she was ready was that everything goes into her mouth!  When we eat or drink something she needs to see or touch what we have.  She can sit up very well with support, so we knew it was time!

Our pediatrician, Dr. Landcaster, recommended that we give it to her very thin first and then slowly make it thicker.  It has been about a week and we tried several ways to feed her.  The first night I sat her in Dan's lap and that was not very successful as she wanted to hold the spoon and most of it did fell onto her bib and clothes.  The next night, Tuesday, we decided to try her in the Bumbo.  That was a little more successful and more cereal appeared in her mouth!  She has more fun holding the spoon and biting on it than eating the cereal.  Finally, on Wednesday we discovered the best approach, the bouncer!  This bouncer seat has been quite a lifesaver for us!  (Thanks again Brookie and Chris)  The bouncer angles her just right and she can eat all her cereal much better!

She is so cute when she eats, grabbing the spoon and putting it into her own mouth!

Thus far cereal has been a success and we make it a little thicker each night.  She really loves to eat it too!  I look forward to trying new foods with her!