party animal

Olivia's official birthday celebration took place this past weekend. It was our first chance to entertain in our new house so we were very excited. The theme for the party was safari animals. Over the summer Olivia became obsessed with the zoo and really started getting into all of the animals, so it was the perfect choice. I found some adorable party decorations that were really bright and cute. We decorated and set-up while my Mom prepared all of the food (bless her!). She also made Olivia's cake! It was so stinkin' cute...not to mention really yummy!

The party was on Saturday and we wanted it to be later in the afternoon so Olivia would be well rested from her nap. Saturday was also Olivia's first fall swimming lesson so she was pretty tired. I ended up having to wake her up in time for the guests to arrive. But once she was up she immediately went into party animal mode! There was a twinkle in her eye as people started arriving and gifts started piling up. After some social time we decided that we would dive right into the gifts. No sense in making the poor little thing wait!

I was so surprised by how into opening gifts she was. She knew the drill, without any help at all. Being a kid, she would find the card, toss it to the side and start tearing off wrapping paper or pulling tissue out of the bag. Her reaction to each gift was the same. It was usually, "WOW!" or "LOOK AT THIS!". Each gift was as exciting as the last, whether it was clothes or a really neat toy. Of course she wanted to take each present out of it's respective box immediately and open it up so the hard part was convincing her to wait until we were all done with the gifts before we could start playing with them. She was understanding and just went on her way, tearing open another present. It was such fun watching the joy in her eyes as she tore through those presents. Once she was done with her gifts we told her that she had one more present down in the basement. Everyone followed Olivia downstairs so they could see her reaction to the wonderful kitchen that Todd's parents had gotten for her!

She was thrilled and from that point forward we hardly saw her the rest of the night. All of the kids at the party had a good time cooking with Olivia. It was the perfect gift for her. Now whenever we want her to come upstairs she says, "NO mama! I'm cookin'!". Too cute! My Mom is hoping that the cooking gene has been instilled in Olivia since I do not have much of an interest. She believes that the love for cooking must have skipped a generation! We will see!

Olivia was able to tear herself away from her favorite birthday gift long enough to come upstairs for birthday cake. I have never seen a child's eyes light up the way hers do when it comes to cake. After singing "Happy Birthday" to her I was smart enough to remove the white birthday shirt I had made for her. Chocolate cake, white shirts and toddlers are not meant to go together!

There was a big difference in the mess from last year to this year. There was not nearly as much cake on the floor or on Olivia. She successfully used her fork to eat the majority of her cake so the clean up was a "piece of cake"...so to speak.

Olivia received a wonderful surprise on the day of her party. While she was napping the most adorable little truck pulled up in front of our house only to drop off the most amazing "Edible Arrangement". In case you have never heard of this company they design these awesome fruit bouquets for any occasion. It arrived at our door with a birthday balloon and an adorable teddy bear attached to it. I knew immediately that it was from my Uncle Larry who lives in Florida. He always remembers special occasions and was thoughtful enough to recognize Olivia's party by sending her some of her favorite things...fruit, balloons and teddy bears! Olivia could hardly keep her hands of this delicious "edible arrangement" all night. It was a huge hit and was completely devoured in no time. Thank you, Uncle Larry! It was such a thoughtful gesture!

I am still adjusting to the fact that my baby is two! She acts like she is two and she definitely looks like she is two, but it does not seem like she should be two already. The time has gone much too fast and I am worried that the next time I blink she is going to be five and I am going to be wondering where my baby went. So far this is my favorite stage of Olivia's life. If I could freeze her at this age I would. She is just so full of energy and personality right now. Her vocabulary is off the charts. I find it hard to believe that I am able to have a full conversation with my two year old...while understanding everything she is telling me!

I think it is safe to say that our girl enjoyed her 2nd birthday. She partied until every single guest was gone. She then crashed hard and we were able to put the birthday celebration behind us until next year. Hopefully Olivia's third year won't fly by so quickly. It was a great party. Thank you to all of our family that attended. Also, thank you to my Mom for making the food and the cake. I want to leave you with some great family pictures from Olivia's party....

look who's two!

Today our sweet Olivia turned two! How is it possible? It seems like just yesterday she came into our lives. It is amazing to think of all that has happened since that day. Her first year was amazing but her second year was even better. I can only imagine what year #3 has in store.

We started our day with a special birthday breakfast. After getting dressed in her "birthday girl" t-shirt that I made especially for her I presented her with a birthday waffle, candle in all! She was thrilled with it and got super excited as I sang "Happy Birthday" to her.

She attempted to blow out the candle on her own but had a little trouble so she asked me for help. Together we blew out her candle which made her very happy! (I hope her wishes come true!)

Then it was time to head off to school. Olivia wanted to wear her birthday crown to school and I did not attempt to deny her that request. We also brought treats for the kids in her class. Every kid deserves for a fuss to be made on their birthday, right? When I picked her up that afternoon she came walking out with the birthday crown still on. I have no idea if she wore it all morning, but I would not be the least bit surprised if she did. Olivia spent the rest of the afternoon at Mama Kay's, like she does every day. Her daddy picked her up and they went to the playground as a special birthday treat. Olivia LOVES playgrounds and since the weather has been so beautiful lately he knew it was the perfect way to continue her special day. Before dinner Olivia opened a present from Mama Kay. She sent it home with us because the other kids would have gotten a little jealous watching Olivia open a present. It was some Elmo building blocks so she was happy!

For her special birthday dinner I made spaghetti...Olivia's favorite! I also whipped up a quick cake so she would have a special treat after dinner. I am sure that Olivia has no idea that we will fully celebrate her birthday this weekend with an official birthday party. But since today is her official birthday she had to have cake to dive into. I decided that I would let her get as messy as possible. You only turn two once, right?

The spaghetti was yummy, but the cake was what Olivia was really interested in. After singing to her once again she tried to blow out the candles but still needed help. She took quite a few bites of her cake but quickly realized it was much more fun to smoosh it and play with it. What ever makes my girl happy!

Olivia does everything to the fullest extent, so I had no doubt that she would be a total mess by the time she was finished with her birthday meal. But that is OK. The important thing is that she enjoy herself...and that she did!

I think Olivia had a wonderful day. Whether or not she fully understood that it was her birthday or what a birthday is for that matter is unknown. What she does know is that we made a fuss over her and that is what birthdays are all about. We are really looking forward to fully celebrating her 2nd birthday this weekend with all of our family and friends.

Olivia, on your second birthday I want you know what joy you have brought into our lives. Each day with you is an adventure and we are so excited to see what new things lie ahead in the upcoming year. Your twinkling personality and zest for life make us happier than anything else in this world. We love you so much and are so proud of all you have accomplished! Happy Birthday my beautiful girl!

no tricks, just treats

Halloween was a huge hit with Olivia! She had a blast! I was shocked by how much she got into the whole thing. I figured she would still be too young to have much of an interest. Boy, was I wrong!

Our Halloween celebration started earlier in the week with a trip to the Fort Wayne Children's Zoo for their annual Great Zoo Halloween. Each year they cover the zoo with pumpkins and cool festive displays. There are about 10 candy stations that the kids can visit to collect their candy while they walk through the zoo. There aren't many animals out at this point because the zoo is closed for the year and it is usually too cold for some of the animals to be out. Even though it was a cool night there were some animals still out so Olivia was pleased. It was the perfect fall night to be out doing a little early trick-or-treating. Considering the fact that Olivia's costume was quite warm I was hoping that the weather would be cooler so she would not be uncomfortable while being stuffed in a big furry costume. She must have been snug as a bug because she did not complain one bit. In fact she really liked her costume and was more than happy to wear it.

We talked to Olivia about Halloween beforehand so she could possibly understand the whole thing. We told her that she was going to dress up and go around collecting candy. We also taught her exactly what to say if she wanted candy. Within a day she had it nailed. When people would ask her what she was going to be for Halloween she replied, "I be Elmo costume". Once we got to the zoo we explained to her that she had to hand a ticket to each person in order to get her candy. She caught onto that right away. She refused to say "trick-or-treat", but she said "thank-you" each time without fail. I was very proud of our big girl!

The trip to the zoo exhausted our Little Elmo. And luckily after giving her only one piece of candy she forgot about it all. She did manage to find some energy to run through the leaves on the way back to the car though. It was such a fun night, and it wasn't even Halloween yet!

Now you would think that the weather would stay fairly cool this time of year. Nope...it was 65 degrees on Friday! I was super worried about Olivia wearing that heavy costume on such an unseasonably warm day. Yes, she was warm...but once again she did not complain! We had a great night! We started out doing a little trick or treating in our neighborhood. We took the wagon so Olivia would not get overheated walking from door to door.

She did not hesitate walking right up to the houses and ringing the doorbell if necessary to get her candy. If allowed she preferred to pick out her own candy too...as if she knew what she was choosing! She always finished with a big "thank-you" before moving onto the next house. She had the routine down pat in no time. She was a trick-or-treating pro!

We visited some friends in the neighborhood and hit up a few other houses before packing up to go visit the grandparents! Next we headed off to Todd's parents and then to my Mom's. Everyone was dying to see Olivia all dressed up. At each stop I would pull Olivia's costume down around her waist so she could cool off a little. The poor thing was sweating like crazy underneath. I thought she would resist putting it back on time after time, but again...no complaints!

After one more stop we finally made our way out to final destination. We ended the evening with our friends Korrie & Tom and their two boys. It is becoming a tradition that after trick-or-treating is over we go over to their house for chili and a little relaxation. We arrived much later than we planned and we were all exhausted. It was way past Olivia's bed time but she was having so much fun. She refused to release her Elmo pail from her death grip all night but she only requested a few pieces of candy. I think she just wanted to hold onto her stash which could only be considered a huge accomplishment. The amount of candy this child collected was insane! Lucky for us she has since forgotten about it. Now it will be sitting in our house for the next month as we slowly eat it all.

Halloween was so much more fun than I expected it to be for Olivia. I never thought she would get so involved in the holiday! I can only imagine what the next few years will be like. Now from one big event to another. In just two short days Olivia will turn two years old! We thought she was excited about Halloween? She is even more excited about her birthday!

fall fun

The weather is changing, and changing fast! Just a few short weeks ago we were moving into our new house in 80 degree weather. Now we get all bundled up in the mornings to head off to school...brrrrrrr! Luckily the afternoons are still warm enough that we have been able to do some fun things. Olivia's babysitter is trying to maximize the nice weather too by letting the kids play outside as much as possible before they have to be couped up all winter. A few weeks ago I went to pick up Olivia and found her having fun outside with her friends. She loves running around with all of the kids at Mama Kay's house, regardless of their age.

We also went to a party for Todd's job recently. It was outdoors at Paige's Crossing in Columbia City. It was a little chilly but Olivia had a great time playing miniature golf for the first time. It was not the most organized round of golf but it was fun watching her try to smack the ball with the putter. They had a fun playground that she enjoyed but unfortunately she was too young to go on any of the rides. As you can imagine she was not happy about that!

We are loving our new house and our neighborhood. There are multiple ponds throughout the neighborhood and most of them are in walking distance from our house. A few weeks ago my Mom took Olivia for a walk to one of the ponds and they realized that the fish really like cheerios! Since then we have taken Olivia to the ponds many times so she can feed the fish her cheerios. They immediately rush to the surface to chomp on them. It is a fun thing for her to do and all we have to do is walk down the street. Of course she can't give all of her cheerios to the fishies. She must munch on a few too!

When it is too chilly to be outdoors Olivia enjoys snuggling up with her Daddy in our new BIG chair! It is the perfect size for both of them. This is usually what they do right before Olivia heads off to bed.

Speaking of bed, Olivia has started climbing out of her crib! Oh, I thought we were going to skip this stage. Up until now she has never attempted to get out. Last week, while she was supposed to be napping, I heard some noise coming from her room. I opened her door to find her sitting on the floor, looking through some books, with shoes on her feet and a paci in her mouth. The look on her face was priceless once she realized she was busted. I have no idea how she got out, but she obviously did not hurt herself. We had a talk about it and I asked that she not get out of her crib without help from me. She told me she would stay in her bed and she did...until this past Sunday. One week later, during nap time once again, she got out. It has only happened twice and so far she has stayed in her crib at night, but it soon may be time to transition to the toddler bed. I am not ready for her to move into a big girl bed yet, and I do not think she is completely ready yet either. We will just see how things go but it may be happening sooner rather than later.

In less than one week Olivia will turn two. Party plans are in the works! Olivia is acting more like a two year old each day. She has started calling me "Mom" now. For some reason she stopped saying "mommy" as much and now refers to me mostly as "Mom". One of her favorite things to say is, "hold on, Mom". She holds up her finger when she says it too. It is quite funny. She has also started to say, "I can't" whenever she has trouble doing something or simply does not want to do something. I try to explain to her that she is fully capable of doing most things and that if she is having trouble to simply ask us for help. It is amazing how much she can do on her own now. Attending Montessori school has made Olivia a very self-sufficient and independent little girl. She can put on her own shoes and is learning how to put on her coat by flipping it over her head. Remember learning to put on your coat by laying it on the floor, putting your arms in and flipping it over your head? It is funny how Olivia is learning to do things the same way we did when we were kids. Each day she amazes us with all that she is learning.

Finally, Olivia had picture day at school last week. This is the one day when we are asked to dress them up for school. Pictures are taken first thing so they can then change into their play clothes and go about their day. It gave me the opportunity to put Olivia in a very cute outfit that she does not get to wear very often. I snapped a few shots of my own before we left for school. She was more than happy to give me one of her big cheesy grins. When I picked her up that afternoon her teacher told me that picture day went great but that they had a heck of a time getting Olivia to smile. I guess she used them all up on me. I am anxious to see how her class picture turned out. I cannot imagine trying to get a large group of toddlers to sit still long enough to take a picture.

We have a fun weekend coming up. Friday is Halloween, of course. We are looking forward to taking Olivia trick-or-treating as she understands how it works a little better this year. We took her for a test drive in her costume tonight by taking her to the Zoo Halloween. It was a ton of fun and Olivia enjoyed collecting her candy. Not to mention the fact that she looked ADORABLE! Check back next week for a Halloween wrap-up. Until then I hope that everyone has a very safe and fun Halloween!

home, sweet home

I don't even know where to start. I guess the first thing to say is, "whew!". Moving is not fun, and we do not plan on doing it again anytime soon. In fact if we never do it again I will be happy. The move itself went great though. I think we had the best moving crew in history. Although it was a very long and tiring day, it went quite smooth with no major problems. All of our stuff arrived at our new house unharmed and in one piece. Well not really, most things had to be put back together again. (Another big pain associated with moving!). I have already thanked all of our amazing friends and family that helped us through that day, but I need to say one more big THANK YOU! You really helped to make the whole event much easier.

We have officially been in our new house one week and we love it! I took last week off of work so that I could unpack all of our stuff. The idea of living out of boxes made me crazy. After working non stop each day I was able to get the majority of our stuff put away. What a relief! I would take a break from time to time and hit a few stores to grab things for the new house. (That is the part I like.) I failed to take any pictures on moving day or the chaos of our house after all of the boxes were put in their appropriate rooms. But if you could have seen what things looked like the day after we moved, compared to what they looked like one week later you would be shocked. I know I was.

Olivia has adjusted to her new house amazingly well. I figured that she would, because she adapts to new situations very quickly, but I thought she would be confused for awhile and may not sleep well the first few nights in her new bedroom. Well I was wrong! This kid never ceases to amaze me. She has been sleeping great from the very first night and she loves to announce "Livie's new house!" when we pull into our driveway. Now Olivia's babysitter is next door to where we used to live. The first few days she asked why there were different people at her house, but since then she hasn't given her old house another look. We tried our best to explain the situation to her and I think she really understands. She now refers to each house as her "old house" and "new house". As always Olivia has been very busy with school, tap class and spending time with her grandparents, which is another reason the move has not had much of an effect on her. We took Olivia to her old house the day after we moved so she could see her room for the last time. She was very confused by the fact that the house was completely empty, but she was immediately fascinated with the fact that her voice echoed in each empty room. I had to take a few final pictures so we could remind her of her amazing first bedroom.

Now that we have a bigger house we are finding that we need more stuff to fill it up. Todd and I have been buying a few small pieces of furniture to fill in spaces here and there. Last week Todd was putting together an end table and Olivia decided that she wanted to help her daddy. She said, "daddy, I use screwdriver". So Todd handed her a screwdriver and she attempted to help him with the table. It was such a cute moment. She is so interested in everything these days and always wants to try things on her own. Being in Montessori school has really brought out her independence. She has always been independent but now I think she thinks she is ready to move out on her own!

After a very long and exhausting week Todd and I were able to get away and celebrate our 4 year anniversary which was last week. Last year my Mom gave us a gift certificate she won at a silent auction to a little bed and breakfast in Berne, Indiana called The Schug House. We thought this would be the perfect time to use it. I was dying to get away from all of the boxes and just relax in a quiet little town. The B&B was amazing! The house was so old and historic. It was also very private and quaint. Aside from being the furniture capital of Indiana, Berne does not have a great deal to offer in the way of dining or entertainment. We decided to drive into Decatur to try Marko's, which was highly recommended to us. We had a wonderful dinner and returned to the B&B for a full night's sleep. The next morning the innkeeper served us a very nice breakfast and we were able to talk with him about the house and it's history. It was the perfect getaway and I am so glad we went. I would highly recommend it to anyone who is looking to get away from life's daily stresses and just enjoy some peace and quiet. Plus, how cute is this place?

So the past week has been a whirlwind, but we are slowly getting settled and falling into a routine at our wonderful new house. The next step is decorating. I am dying to get the rooms painted and designed. I know it will take awhile, but I have the whole winter ahead of me. The next thing we have to get ready for is Olivia's 2nd birthday. In a few short weeks we will be celebrating this milestone and throwing our very first party at the new house. Yikes! I am still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that our daughter is turning two! I have much more to update everyone on but I must put an end to this post. Now that we are settled I hope to fall back into a regular blogging routine. Thanks again, to everyone who helped us move and to those who have helped us get settled. We could not have done it without you. It is a nice feeling to be able to say "home, sweet home". Plus, the view is great!

chaos

Moving day is 3 days away and this is the chaos that we are living in right now! Yikes!

I can't believe the big day is almost here. The past few weeks have been a blur. We have been packing non-stop, making calls and signing papers. I don't think I have stopped moving long enough to actually realize that our time in this house is almost up. I just put Olivia to bed and it was hard to choke back the tears. We have been talking to her about the changes that will take place very soon. We also told her that she will have a new bed room that will have much more room for all of her toys. Now when we ask her if she is excited to move to her new house she says, "Yes, new bedroom!". I am still preparing for a freak-out the first few nights. But she will adjust quickly and start having a blast in her new house before we know it.

We have a lot of people helping us with the move this weekend. I want to thank them all in advance as I know it will be a long, hard day. It will be so nice when it is all over. I know we have a lot of work ahead of us but we are getting more excited each day. For now we will enjoy these final hours together in our first family home. So, as Olivia's says each morning as we leave for school, "Goodbye, Home!".