Reminiscing

One of the girls I work with is enjoying her 4th in Vegas. It has been too long since Greg and I have had an "actual" vacation but Vegas was our last one...Enjoy some of my reminiscing!

Some June Pics

Swings!

Watching the Father's Day Kick Ball game.

Contemplating what to do next....I'm sure it is something she shouldn't do!

Olivia LOVES it when we let her eat from an adult chair. She is still a little on the short side but she doesn't seem to mind.


Her poor cousin....

I can't believe that we are already in July and that Lu is already 18 months old! She had her checkup this week and checked in at 32" and 24lb 1oz. 50-55th percentile for everything. She is such an active (spirited as her great grandmother calls her!) child. This past week has been eventful as she has finally begun using the potty! Last night I think she even surprised herself when she made poo in the potty. She had such a confused look on her face. I don't know that these recent events will lead to a fully potty trained child any time soon but it is still a pretty cool milestone. Greg says that she does something huge every 9 months: Was born after 9 months, walked at 9 months, used the potty at 18 months. He was pretty bummed when I told him there really isn't too many more 'physical' achievements and that from now on they would be more educational and social ;) We are both excited for what God has in store for our sweetheart!

Happy 4th

It is an odd night around our household. I have been up by myself for about 2 hours now. Olivia is asleep. Greg is asleep. I sit here bored. Nothing is on tv (I guess they assume everyone would be out enjoying the 4th). All the laundry is done. The house is basically clean (all other cleaning may involve waking of sleeping people). I can hear the music from the bands playing at our local park. I would love to take a walk down there but I don't want to wake Greg to let him know where I am going and either way I don't think he would like it that I went down there 'by myself'. I wish I had motivation to do some of those extra things like sewing and sorting. It is strange that when you do have the time you don't want to do that stuff. Anyways....I sit and wait to hear the fireworks from my living room. I am sure if I open the shades in the living room I'll even be able to see some. I hope everyone has an enjoyable 4th...even if it is a little less traditional than most ;)

He Still Makes Me Laugh...

"I think I should become a door-to-door salesman and
sell "No Soliciting" signs."

-Greg Mouser-

18...Are you kidding me?

Olivia is growing quickly. She is so smart, which sometimes gets her into lots of trouble. She is currently learning mama and papa's behavior expectations and what happens when we choose not to listen. There are certainly times where a battle of wills is at play. She is learning though that mama and papa are as stubborn as she is. It is an interesting line to walk with her right now because I want her to explore and be able to satisfy her curiosity but most of the time it seems like this leads her to getting hurt or ruining something. Speaking of getting hurt...you should see this girl's knees, I don't think they will be scrap free this entire summer at the rate we are going!

I have come to the conclusion that she needs more age appropriate toys. Being a January baby doesn't allow for many new gifts to come her way during the rest of the year so I am going to start keeping my eyes peeled for some good deals. She played tonight with one of her baby dolls and 2 wipes that never got used and have since dried out. It was so cute to see her use those dry wipes to clean the baby's face and to cover the baby as if they were blankets and then pat her to sleep. Seeing her pretend play is such a great experience for me as a mom. I want to get her a baby doll that she can work on putting clothes on and off of and just interact with more than the "plush" version she has right now. She kept asking me to take the baby's hat off. Little does she know that baby's hat is sewed on to her face to keep all her stuffing brains in tact. She may be highly disappointed if I were to actually get that hat off. Though...she may also be quite interested in the new play material.

We went to the children's museum today and it made me realize that I really need to get her a play kitchen set. She stood by one of the tables pretend mixing things in bowls and cups and then offering them to me. She also had so much fun putting fruits, veggies, and other things into her grocery basket.

It is so fun to look back on all her baby pictures and see how much she has advanced and grown in such a short 18 months! I have 2 new nephews now and I am so excited to see them grow up and someday play with Olivia. Based on what I have seen so far though...those boys better watch out because I am sure she will let them know who is in charge! (she might get a little bit of that from her mommy...but don't tell anyone!)

"The toddler age allows children to look at life in a whole new way."

Hello. My name is Jessica and I am a cereal snob.

That's right. I am a cereal snob, meaning, it's only brand name for me. I think it stems from trying a few 'off-brands' when I younger that just didn't compare in terms of taste. However, given the need to be within a budget I am attempting to explore some off brands and I have been surprised. I have tried a version of rice chex and frosted flakes and both, though not the same as the original, are a good enough compromise. And given that each box is about 2$ cheaper than the brand name I guess my taste buds can work through their issues. I am sure I will have weak moments while at the grocery store when I just can't resist real lucky charms but I think I am making steps in the right director to get over my addiction to brand name.

My Baby is 1!!!

Happy Birthday Olivia!

Yesterday, Olivia celebrated her 1st. She was surrounded by her family and had a wonderful time seeing everyone, opening presents, and eating cake!




She did really well, only crying when she bumped her lip on the fireplace tile :( (no damage taken by the little one though!) and whenever someone came at her with the birthday hat. She really hated that hat!



The day went very smoothly considering how many people we crammed into the house. I am glad we had the party and made the memories but equally glad that it is done! :)