14 Months, Week 3

Greetings from the region! Olivia and I are up north for a few days while Josh and Grampy replace the flooring in our kitchen and family room.  First stop, the Dunes!  The last time we tried to go in the fall it was pretty chilly.  It was much nicer today.  Olivia liked the sand much better than when we took her to the beach in Florida!



One of the first things we tackled at Grandma and Grandpa's house was learning how to go down the stairs. At home, we usually just carry her down the stair (she figured out how to crawl up the stairs months ago). Since Olivia rarely sits still, I needed to teach her a safe way to tackle the stairs in and out of the family room at Grandma and Grandpa's. After a few lessons and modeling, she quickly got the hang of it!

As a frozen yogurt connoisseur, Olivia insisted that we try the local fare.  She was fairly impressed and give it a solid 8.0.

Of course it didn't stop her from chowing down on yummy eats at Grandma's house! Slowly but surely she is getting the hang of using a spoon.

On Sunday, Olivia got to hang with Grandpa while Grandma and I went to a bridal shower.  He took her shopping to Toys R Us and let her pick out whatever she wanted.  She chose a beach chair and shopping cart.  She has been having a ball running around the house pushing that cart!

The next day, Olivia got the chance to go swimming at the Kostidis' house.  She loved jumping in and didn't mind (too much) wearing the life vest I insisted upon.

Auntie Carrie also came over for dinner and a quick visit.  We always love seeing her!

Another Region favorite that can't be missed, Schoop's!  Olivia got to splurge and try a little bit of their famous "Mickey" burger and fries.  No Green River for her yet though!

As we were getting ready to pack up and head back to Fishers, Olivia got to sit on Grandpa's lap and hear one more story.  Who could resist that?

Once we got all loaded up in the car, Olivia settled in with some milk and her new DVD player from her shopping trip with Grandpa.  She has been loving Elmo's "Singing with the Stars."  I have to admit, it is pretty cute.













 
Here's a sneak peak of Olivia's 2013 Summer Wardrobe. We usually buy a majority of her clothes at the end of the season because you can get some great deals that way. Grandma Sue and I found some major bargains while we were out and about!

14 Months, Week 2

Places to go, people to see! Olivia doesn't have time for standing still! That's how she stays fit and trim at 21 pounds, 3.1 ounces!

She also eats right, which means sometimes snagging my yogurt smoothies.

Olivia has been trying out the Music 2 and Play & Learn Level 4 classes lately because she is so, how shall we say, "active". The instructors thought the next level would be better for her since they involve a lot more movement and not as much sitting still. The kiddos are a little bit older, but motor skill-wise she is right on par with them. Although, I'm not sure the teacher intended for Olivia to climb on the drum after she showed her how to play it!

We also went back later that day for Open Gym (in case you are wondering, we go to Gymboree A LOT!  It's been too hot to be outdoors and she can run around and play w/o getting hurt or me yelling, "Olivia!  Put that down!").  They had an open arts and crafts time and Olivia picked out a purse to decorate (Ok, I might have picked for her. It was that or a guitar. I think the choice was obvious.).  She had fun with the paint, stickers, and crayons.  Thank heavens the paint was washable!



Olivia and Josh also had a Daddy Daughter Date Night. It looks like someone was having fun on the trampoline! Unfortunately, when they got home the power went out during a quick thunderstorm. Good thing they didn't lose power at the frozen yogurt shoppe!

Today we headed up to the Region for a few days.  Josh and Grampy are putting in hardwood floors in the kitchen and family room and Olivia and I decided the best way we could help was to get the heck out of dodge!  Grandma Sue was nice enough to be our chauffeur and drove down from Valpo to pick us up.   Before we hit the road, we headed to Gymboree to burn off some extra energy.  Although, the idea was for Olivia to run around, Grandma joined in the fun too!

14 Months, Week 1

What better way to celebrate a 14 month birthday, than with frozen yogurt?  I know I say this every month, but I can't believe how quickly time is flying by and how big Olivia is getting!  Ack!  Although some days are a bit rough at times, I really do love having these days at home with her.  Summer is going by too quickly!

Last weekend, our good friend Kalman came over to play.  They played so well together!  It was also quite toasty outside so we headed to the splash pad at Billericay Park.  Such a fun place and perfect for trying to beat the heat.

Due to the high heat and lack of rain, our lawn and some of our plants have gotten a little bit crunchy.  Olivia was a big help when she and I went to Lowe's to get some replacements.  When we got home, she also helped Josh with the planting.  She loves to help whenever possible.  She gets so excited and claps her hands while wearing the biggest smile when you tell her, "Good job!"

Some days, the only way to beat the heat is to avoid it and stay inside!  Today we went to story time at the library.  Olivia liked the singing, dancing, and play time with the toys and other kiddos (sitting and listening to the stories was not really a preferred activity!).  Later in the afternoon, we went to an indoor play place with bounce houses called "Monkey Joe's" with our friends Miss Nichole and Isabella.  They have a special area for kiddos under three.  The girls were a little unsure of the bounce houses and Olivia seemed to prefer just running around the whole place.  Oh well, I think they still had fun!

13 Months, Week 4

Happy Fourth of July from our little firecracker!  Hats (or headbands and bows for that matter) still aren't her favorite thing, but she looked awfully cute decked out in her red, white, and blue (thanks Grandma and Grammy!)

They also had a parade at Olivia's daycare to celebrate the 4th.  I was so bummed I had to miss it due to being sick, but from the pictures it looks like Olivia had a ball playing Grand Marshall!

While I was under the weather, Olivia and Josh took great care of me.  They went and got me some sherbet (one of my sick time favorites) to help my sore throat.  Over the last few weeks, Olivia has also started giving hugs.  Sometimes she does it while you are holding her.  Other times she will sneak up behind you , grab your legs, and rest her head on your knees.  It is seriously the sweetest thing in the world!  And a great cure for whatever ails you!

We enjoyed a pretty low key day on the fourth.  We all thought we'd beat the heat and go swimming a bit later in the day with our good friends, the Galyens.  Little did we know it was still going to be 90+ degrees at 7:00 at night!  Oh well, we still had lots of fun!  Look how cute the kiddos were in their jammies!

Speaking of the heat, did I mention we have set records with the high temps this week?  Oh. My. Word.  It has been absolutely miserable to be outside for more than 30 seconds unless you are in a pool or at a sprinkler park.  So that's just where we have been when we ventured outside of the house.  You know it's bad when a trip to Walmart sounds good because it's nice and cool inside!



Another favorite indoor location has been Gymboree.  Olivia LOVES it and it's a great way for her to burn off some of her extra energy without melting into a puddle.

And who knew Lowe's had timeout stalls in their bathroom department? I guess some people might use them for showers, but they also work great if you have an active toddler who isn't really jazzed about sitting in the cart.