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!