Olivia's BFF

Do you remember your best friend when you were a kid? Do you remember writing notes in school and signing them, "Your BFF!" (Best-Friend-Forever). Do you remember wanting to be with your best friend constantly? Well, all of that is just getting started with Olivia...at the age of two (almost three). Yes, she has her very first BFF! Her name is Laurel and attends Three Rivers Montessori as well.

Olivia and Laurel met last year. They were in the same toddler classroom. They were quite young when they first met...not even two. At that age children really have no interest in making friends. They much rather play on their own and get quite annoyed when someone else tries to interfere. Towards the end of their first year of school they started spending more time together. Olivia would talk about Laurel and things they did in class. It was clear she was taking a liking to her. As the summer approached we talked to Laurel's parents about getting the kids together during the break. Well things came up and before we knew it the summer was over and we never made any plans. Both girls were moving up into new classrooms this year and I secretly hoped they would be in the same class. That did not happen, but we did finally make plans with Laurel's parents a few months ago and got the girls together.

They came over to our house for a cookout. The weather did not cooperate so we ended up staying inside all night. That did not matter to the girls because they were beyond excited to be playing together. I think they ran around and played with each other for two straight hours. There was a lot of high pitch screaming going on, as well as a ton of giggling! The best part was that they really seemed to enjoy spending time together. Both were exhausted by the end of the night, but the first thing out of Olivia's mouth when Laurel left was, "I want to play with Laurel again sometime!". We really hit it off with Laurel's parents too, so we knew that play dates would be happening on a regular basis.

Now that the school year is in full swing I am sort of glad that they are not in the same class. Many times each week they see each other on the playground and it makes their time together that much more special. I have a feeling that if they spent every day together in class they would quickly tire of one another. Now when Olivia sees Laurel at school she gets super excited and she can't wait to tell me when I pick her up. She usually tells me that Laurel is her "best friend". A few weeks ago we had another play date, this time at Laurel's house. It was a low key night of pizza and conversation. The girls were busy with toys and the adults were able to get a little bit of actual conversation in while occasionally checking to see what they were up to.

They get along quite well and aside from the occasional disagreement they play great with each other. They seem to be interested in the same things and have very little problem sharing toys. That is pretty good considering their age. I just love how much they laugh when they are together. They just seem to click. It is fascinating to me that they have picked each other out of all of the children at school. They have many other friends, but they seem to be drawn to each other more than anyone else. It just melts my heart. Laurel may be the first of many friends for Olivia , but she will always be Olivia's first BFF!

Olivia is enjoying school so much right now. She is thriving in her new classroom and seems to be learning quite a bit. I get occasional updates from her teacher, Ms. Laura, but I recently received an e-mail from her that made me beam with pride. Here is what she said...

"She is wonderful! She is very observant and pays the closest attention to new lessons! She works from the minute she leaves line until it is time to go outside! Truly a Montessori child!Thank you for sharing her with us!"

I cannot tell you how happy it makes me to know how well she is doing. Each day she amazes me by sharing something with me I did not know she knew. Today in the car she informed me that she saw Asia and Europe on the map. Now I knew they were doing a unit on geography, but I had no idea she actually knew the names of some of the continents! She plays pretend school at home so I get an idea of how things work in her classroom. I am so impressed with how focused and into it she is. I hope that her love for learning continues. For now I am just grateful that I am able to send her to this school and give her this experience.

A few weeks ago they had school pictures. Now Olivia NEVER gets dressed up to go to school but that day was a special occasion. I hope that her pictures turned out well. If not I have these to look back on...

Finally, we have some big news to share. Olivia is officially sleeping in a "big girl" bed at home, and I am pleased to say that the transition was a piece of cake! I had a feeling it would be since she had been sleeping in a bed at my Mom's and the babysitters', but you just never know. Last weekend we picked up the bed from our family friend, Cindy. It is an antique bed that her daughter slept in as a child. Since it is no longer being used she thought it would look great in Olivia's room. I have to admit it fit the theme of her room perfectly!

We made a big deal out of going to bed on Sunday night with the hope that her fabulous sleeping habits would not go out the window now that the crib was gone. She piled as many stuffed animals as she could into the bed and plopped herself in the middle. Each night this week she has slept without a problem and so far has followed our "no getting out of bed" rule. We did not want her to think that she could just get out and walk around the house now that the crib rails were gone. She has stayed in the bed and called for us when she needs something. Once again I am so very proud of her and feel so grateful to have such an amazing child.

Next week Olivia and I will be flying to California to meet up with my Mom and stay with Olivia's Aunt Sue Sue. The sad part is that we will be leaving Todd at home. This will be the longest amount of time away from Olivia for him and I will be away during our 5 year anniversary. I know...bad wife, but it is the only time we could have take the trip. Olivia is super excited and I am super nervous about getting on a plane by myself with her. Pray for me!