Love this...

During the week I have to wake Olivia up for daycare and she ALWAYS takes forever to wake up (which is one of my favorite things about the morning!)

This past weekend, we had some quality Mommy and Olivia time and I didn't wake her up at all.  She woke up all on her own!

Every time she woke up - be it in the morning or at nap time - I could tell she was awake for a few minutes.  Then I would inevitably hear her blowing bubbles with her mouth.

Then I would find this....

I seriously LOVE letting her wake up on her own - she is SO much happier then when I have to wake her up.  Even if it is only 15 minutes later.

I love having all of us together, but I truly cherish our alone time together!

Too cool for school!

This little girl is way too cool for school!

I ordered her a couple hats and some sunglasses from Amazon and the first time I tried them on her - she HATED them! BUT she also hates having the sun in her eyes...so when one of our nicer days came along and it was sunny - she let me put her sunglasses on!

I got two different kinds of sunglasses - the regular kind and the strap behind the head kind. 

Surprisingly these are the kind she will wear (for know) are the regular pair!

She is so fricking adorable! I can't get enough of her dipple!

Blueberry Girl

My mother sent me this book for my birthday with the inscription, "For my daughter to read to her daughter" I love everything about it.
 

Ladies of Light, and Ladies of Darkness
and Ladies of Never-You-Mind,
This is a prayer for a Blueberry Girl
First: May you Ladies be kind.

Keep her from spindles and sleeps at sixteen;
Let her stay waking and wise.
Nightmares at three, or bad husbands at thirty;
These will not trouble her eyes.

Dull days at forty, false friends at fifteen;
Let her have brave days and truth.
Let her go places that we’ve never been;
Trust and delight in her youth.

Ladies of Grace, and Ladies of Favour,
and Ladies of Merciful Night,
This is a prayer for a Blueberry Girl,
Grant her your clearness of sight.

Words can be worrisome, people complex;
Motives and manners unclear.
Grant her the wisdom to choose her path right,
Free from unkindness and fear.

Let her tell stories, and dance in the rain,
Somersault, tumble, and run;
Her joys must be high as her sorrows are deep;
Let her grow like the weed in the sun.

Ladies of Paradox, Ladies of Measure,
Ladies of Shadows-That-Fall,
This is a prayer for a Blueberry Girl,
Words written clear on a wall.

Help her to help herself, help her to stand;
Help her to lose and to find.
Teach her we’re only as big as our dreams;
Show her that fortune is blind.

Truth is a thing she must find for herself,
Precious and rare as a pearl;
Give her all these, and a little bit more,
Gifts for a Blueberry Girl.

“Blueberry Girl” by Neil Gaiman

This little girl loves playing!

Olivia loves playing with toys that make noise.

They are usually the most annoying ones.  I try so very hard to get her to play with the toys that don't have super annoying and weird songs... but those are the ones she loves.

This toy, in particular, is a treat.  When you push the orange nose it spins and lands on an animal.  Most of the time it lands on one animal and plays a different animals song. 

But she loves the darn thing.

AND I find myself singing the songs at work.  Only in my head I hope!

Christmas Cactus Revival

My husbands grandmother who he was super close with passed away in 2009.  We inherited her Christmas Cactus that she has had for so many years.  We kept it as is for the first couple years and it was struggling.  This past winter we re-potted it in a much larger pot and viola! It has grown so much and is blooming for a second time this year.  Maybe it's because we still are getting snow (4 or so inches a couple nights ago). 

I am so glad I have been able to keep it alive! This is my one and only plant.  I am thinking about getting some big planters for outside our front door.  Right now it is pretty plain.  Just not sure what to put there.  The area gets pretty much no sun... need to do some research on that one. It would have to be something that can thrive on its own.  I do not have a green thumb!

My new favorite....

dessert! The Brookie.... a brownie AND a cookie all in one! SO GOOD!

image via

I spotted this recipe on Pinterest and it immediately got my attention.  A Brownie AND a Cookie - Yes please! After scouring the internet for a simple recipe and finding nothing quite up to my standards of lazy... I just winged it!

Here is the recipe: 

Brookies

1 Box of your favorite brownie mix

1 thing of your favorite (or in my case the cheapest) pre-made chocolate chip cookie mix. 

 * You could make your own cookies if you wanted - this was just way easier for me!

Make the brownies as you would and preheat the oven to whatever the brownies say.  My cookies and brownies both said 350 degrees. 

I made mine in a couple muffin tins.  I sprayed the crap out of the tins with cooking spray - and they were still a little hard to get out.  Maybe if you used a silicone muffin pan like this it would not stick as much. I think I am going to pick one up the next time I am at Target!

So you put the brownie mix in the bottom. I used an ice cream scoop to make it less messy.  Fill each cup about a half inch high. Mine made about 20. 

After the brownie mix is in the bottom - take your already prepared cookies dough and flatten each piece so it is about the size of the muffin tin.  Place on top and stick it in the oven.  

I cooked mine for about 15 minutes.  Mine were gooey in the middle (just how we like them).  Make sure you stick a knife or toothpick in to make sure they are done to your liking. 

There you are! The best dessert ever - for now anyway! Bring them to a party and everybody will love you!

On my heart...

I saw this quote at the end of last week and it has stuck with me (in a good way!)

Just keep swimming...

Olivia has had two swimming lessons so far! They are so fun and all the babies are super cute. 

We start out by playing Simon Says -- Simon says, kick your feet in the water; Simon says, wash your leg; Simon says, take a shower (sprinkle water on baby's head).  Then we get in the water.

The group sings a song and travels in a circle to get the babies used to the water.  Then we do some gliding through the water on their tummies with their hands out.  Some gliding with feet kicking, maybe some moving of the arms.

We quickly move into Free Swim where we get to play with noodles and body boards and of course our baby!

We end with another song with some actions and that is it.

Olivia has done really well with being in the water.  She really loves watching everyone else, drinking the water, and splashing!

I am so happy that she is comfortable in the water.  We spend a lot of time in the summers at the lake and want her to enjoy it too!

 Getting ready to go to Swim Class in our sweet pink sweat suit!

 Mommy and Olivia right before class!

Throwback Thursday

I love going back and looking at old photos.  Unfortunately I don't have too many scanned and of course they are all hard copy sitting in a laundry basket at my Mom's. 

This is a family photo of my Mom, Dad, big brother Jacob, little brother Daniel and myself probably 2 or 3 years old here.  This was before my little sisters joined the scene...

Taking in the Moment

My baby girl has gotten herself a little cold again (the 1,232,546,757 this year).  During the day she is fine, maybe a little fussy because she needs her nose wiped.  But at night is when the baby bear comes out.  About an hour after we put her down she wakes up screaming.  I totally understand - the girl can't breath out of her nose and all she wants is her paci, which she spits out right away because all she can do is mouth breath. 

Last night I rocked her for a long time.  I sat in our rocker with that baby on my chest and watched her sleep.  I smelled her clean soft hair, I felt that hair tickle my face, I stroked her chubby cheeks, held her little hand.

I sat there remembering when she was a tiny tator tot, it seemed so long ago but it has only been a few short months.  My baby is growing so fast.  Sitting there rocking her last night made time stand still.  It made me never want to let that moment go.  It reminded me of a quote about moments from The Anderson Crew  "and this is why i love photography.  it's a chance to capture a moment that moves my heart, but that i will forget way too soon." How I wish I had a camera at that moment.  This quote also makes me feel so much better about the hundreds of photos I take each month, I am just capturing moments that move my heart and will forget too soon. 

Don't grow too fast baby girl... I want to remember every moment.

 

Olivia's Baptism

This past weekend we had Olivia's Baptism! We choose my brother and his wife are to be her sponsors.  I was very surprising that she let the Pastor hold her, she is pretty particular these days! Overall, it was a great weekend

 Her God Parents got her a really cute present.  In the picture she is holding a Pearl.  They are going to get Olivia a single pearl on each of her birthdays and by the time she is 18 she will have her very own pearl necklace! Such a cute idea!

This is how she opens her presents....she has to crawl all over them first!

Sometimes....

you just need a reminder.

Make it a great weekend!

Embracing the Camera

In an effort to take more pictures of ME with my little one.... not just of her, I am embracing the camera! I have about a billion pictures just her and only a few of us together!  When she is older and looking through pictures I want some of the two of us together, of her and my husband (which isn't a problem because I am always the one taking photos), and of all of us as a family.

Just me and my baby girl! This is happiness!

8 Month Update!

Olivia turned 8 months old a few days ago and there's something about that age which seems much too close to 1 than I care to admit.

Olivia's demeanor is still sweet as sweet can be. People always say she's just the happiest little baby and she really is.  She has just started getting a little clingy around strangers (and by strangers I mean anyone besides her daddy, mommy or daycare provider!) She just needs a little time with them and then she is good to go!

She loves food. I love that she loves food because it makes feeding her SO easy. She loves Little Crunchies - probably because they taste like Cheetos. She loves the Mixed Berry Yogurt Melts.  She loves lunch meat.  We are just starting to feed her more of what we are eating.  She had some mac and cheese yesterday! She does pretty well for not really having any teeth!

Speaking of teeth, one of her bottom teeth has poked through! I think the second one must be on the way as well. She is doing pretty well with teething, not too cranky at all.  Dan is hoping that one morning she will just wake up with a whole mouth full of teeth so she only has to go through the pain once! Not me, I want those super cute bottom teeth only pictures!

She still waves. She crawls, pretty darn fast. She stands up on everything. She can go up the stairs (with me behind her of course) - and when she does she is so determined and quick! She licks everything.  She loves reading.  She laughs when I do the stupidest things, which makes me do it even more.  She makes that ridiculously cute sound when they pull their fingers to their lips and 'b-b-b-blub' (what the heck do you call that?!??!). Its my favorite thing. It makes me laugh every time.

We are blessed to be your parents, because girl, you bring us so much joy & laughter.

happy 8 months.

Warming up....

We had a fantastic weekend getting things done around the house! It is finally warming up here in Minnesota and you know what that means....

Getting out of the house for a walk with the babies! We went to one of our friends houses for a play date.  They have a little boy who is 10 days older than Olivia. 

They played then we took advantage of the awesome weather and went for a walk - which quickly turned into nap time for both babies!

I love that we have friends with babies the same age.  It makes getting together a little easier and it is so much fun watching them grow up together.

Linking up Here.

Friday finally.....

Someone's a little excited that it's Friday!

Currently Digging....

Lots of things... but here are a few that came to mind....

Can't wait for this movie!

Cute, bright baby shoes! Need these for the baby girl!

Neon colors this spring.

 Opening day at Target Field - Go Twins!

Love being able to go outside for walks with the Husband and the Baby! I feel like we have been couped up all winter! This is a pic of the hubs and the baby strolling around the cabin - in a toy baby stroller.  She loved it!

The Classic Photo Bomb....

Just trying to take a picture of my little one and what happens??

Cookie Monster photo bombs her!

In other news.... I think baby girl is getting her first tooth (at almost 8 months on the dot). She has been a little crabby at daycare which is very unusual for her.  Yesterday I felt along her bottom gums and felt a little sharp thing.  She wouldn't let me look in her mouth, but I certainly felt it! 

I was starting to think she would never get teeth...or toofers as I like to call them.

Last night was the first night that I slept all the way through until morning without waking up with her.  She usually fusses a couple times a night - when she gets stuck in the corners of her crib.  Right around 4:30 she wakes up for a bottle.  The past couple nights she has not done this, she sleeps all the way through! Keep it up baby!

A Coffee Date with Friends....

If we were to meet up for coffee it would have to be at a coffee shop.  I do have a coffee maker (that we got from our Wedding), and 12 coffee cups, but no coffee at all.  

 

I would probably order a Soy Chai Latte because that is my favorite. We would sit in the corner and enjoy a nice conversation.

We would talk lightly about new TV shows, summer plans, how the baby is doing.

I would tell you about how excited I am to meet my new nephew when we go back home! And how nervous I am to travel ten hours with Olivia.

I would tell you how excited I am for Summer to finally get here.  I can't wait to bring Olivia to the park, watch her play in the grass, splash in the lake, go on walks everyday.  It will be so fun!

We would get a little more comfortable and dive into deeper things...

I would tell you how embarrassed and grossed out I am with my post-baby body.  I know that it takes some time for your body to go back to normal.  Well, it has been almost a year and I don't feel like my normal self.  I know it was well worth it and I wouldn't change a thing but it's a little defeating. When I see people I know I feel like they are judging me for not being thinner.  I wasn't a super thin girl to start but I didn't have a load of flabby skin located right in front of me.  It is just hard to deal with sometimes.

I would tell you that I felt like the worst mom in the world when my baby rolled off my bed and onto the floor.  It was like I was watching in slow motion but couldn't get to her fast enough. Worst.  Feeling.  Ever.  She is fine, but still it was the worst.  She is no longer allowed to play on the bed.

I would tell you that I miss my family and wish it were easier to visit.  I would also tell you that I really wish someone would invent a Teleportation Machine. So you smart people out there... get on it please!

I would tell you thanks.  For being my friend.  For listening to me.  For the coffee.

Happy April, happy Monday.

Linking up here.