While we had a great time in Florida, all good things must come to an end. But before we had to go back to the grind, we had a little bit more fun at Grandma and Grandpa's. When we got back from Florida, Grandma Sue had organized an Easter
egg hunt for Livi. She had a great time running around, opening the eggs, and dumping out the change.
It's always a little rough getting back in the routine after a vacation. But Livi handled it like a champ and even came to visit me at work when I was working late one night. That is until a nasty ear infection came to town. Ugh! I really hope it's just a coincidence that she has another one so soon after the tubes fell out. I hate seeing her sick and it just seems so unfair.
Check out the newest assistant usher at St. Mary's. No matter how many toys and snacks we bring, it's always a little hard for Livi to sit through the whole Mass. So, this week we put her to work! Afterwards, we went for dinner and a trip to Menards (another wild Saturday night for the Banks!). Livi picked out a birthday present. I made sure to buckle up and hang on to my purse!
Apparently, this is what happens when Daddy and Mommy decide to divide and conquer the to do list. Mommy goes to the store to spend Gymbucks and buy party supplies and Daddy and Livi go for Yogi. Everybody wins!
Do you see this beautiful masterpiece by acclaimed artist Olivia Banks? Olivia is so proud of this picture! She came running in the house to show it to me and keeps pulling it off the fridge to brag about it. "I paint! I paint!"
Look out, south Florida! Here come the Banks! Spring break has finally arrived and we are so excited to have some time off with our girlie to visit family, soak up some sun, and see the sights. I hoped Livi would sleep through most of our flight down there since I booked a flight at bedtime, but of course there was way too much happening to sleep. But, she still did really well!
Our first stop was to Naples to visit Great Grandpa and Great Grandma Pigg for Easter. Grandpa was a most gracious host! He made delicious meals, gave up his bedroom and bathroom, and stocked up on all of Livi's favorite foods. Even though it had been a while since we had seen him, Olivia quickly warmed up to him and was running around yelling, "Grandpa!"
Easter was absolutely awesome! We had such an amazing visit with my grandma. The day before had been a bit difficult as she was having a hard day. But on Easter, she was alert and chatting up a storm. Livi happily climbed up on her lap and showed off Baby (her doll) and videos on Josh's phone. It is a true testament to her spirit when she is able to break through the walls that the Parkinson's and dementia try to put up and we get to see those glimpses of the lady we all remember.
I love how content and comfortable they both look in this video. You can just see much love there is between the two of them!
We really enjoyed the rest of our stay in Naples. We went to downtown Naples and did a little shopping at "Best of Everything" (jewelry for Mommy; "airbows" for Livi!) and had some yummy ice cream. Before long, it was time to hit the road and head back to the east coast. We stopped at Sawgrass Mills so Daddy could indulge in some Bahama Breeze and Mommy could drool over some new Kate Spade (thank you, Daddy!). Livi was just happy to be out and about and running around!
One of the best parts of being on vacation is taking a break from all the day to day responsibilities including cooking. We have a couple of favorite places we like to try to go to each year (although, one was a big let down this year!), but we also like to try new places. Apparently, Livi felt comfortable enough at Siam Oishi to create her own "Girls Gone Wild" moment.
But let's face it, the real reason you go on vacation in Florida are the beaches and pools! We were blessed with awesome weather, except for one rainy day. Our girl still loves to swim, but this year she really loved the ocean! She couldn't get enough of splashing in the waves. Plus, I loved having matching pink swimsuits and toenails with my girl!
On our last night in Florida, we got to have a great dinner with Uncle Artie and his friend Christine. Miss Christine had all kinds of fun toddler apps her phone and was very good at keeping Livi entertained! She and Uncle Artie made us a very yummy breakfast the next morning before our flight. This trip was a great reminder of the kind and generous family we have!
Livi was quite the charmer on the flights back! She got many packages of goodies and other treats from the flight attendants. She definitely liked flying though and still gets very excited when we see or hear "airpanes" around the neighborhood!
Mr. Easter Bunny, I'm watching you! This week, we decided to go visit the Easter Bunny... Let's just say Olivia was less than thrilled and definitely unimpressed. By the end, Princess was sitting in his chair and the Easter Bunny was on the ground. She's not even two yet and she is already running the show!
But in true Livi fashion, we walked by the Easter Bunny about 30 minutes later and she was all smiles, waiving, and saying, "Hi!" She has to do everything on her own terms. She also got very excited when she saw the Mickey Mouse car. This girl loves to drive!
Over the weekend, Auntie Carrie came to visit and we also got together with the Galyen family. As usual, the kids were well behaved at dinner and had so much fun playing together. Those girls are you know what on wheels, with a whole lot of sass to boot! Spencer is certainly going to have his hand full as they get older.
And in true Indiana weather fashion, we had a pretty major snowstorm on Sunday night/Monday morning. It was enough snow (I think I heard the final total was around 7 1/2 inches) that most of the schools were closed. Even though we have to make the day up at the end of the year, it was totally worth it to have an unexpected day off with our girlie!
We also had a visit with the ENT, Dr. Dugan, this week. She confirmed that Livi's ear tubes have indeed popped out (which is what is supposed to happen eventually). Sigh...I know this is what is supposed to happen, but I'm just so nervous that she is going to start the cycle of one ear infection after another. She is hopeful that since Olivia has grown since last year, the angle of her Eustachian tubes has dropped as well allowing her body to better fight off infections. Dr. Dugan also reminded me that it is normal for kids to have one to two ear infections a year. Hopefully, we won't be back at her office again for a while (or ever!), but I guess we'll know what to expect if we have to go down that road again. And no one can rock fluorescent colored ear plugs quite like Livi!
