randoms

Here are some of my latest cell phone photos :)

Another whirlwind weekend of fun!

First let me show you my new hair! I had a wonderful salon experience on my birthday weekend and I'm happy with my new cut. I always love long hair but I literally can't remember the last time I got my hair cut or even trimmed and it was starting to feel a little limp and blah. Of course I miss my longer locks sometimes now, but this will be nice for warmer weather and a fun change for a while :)

This weekend one of my dearest friends got married. Olivia and I were honored to be part of the wedding festivities and it was a most lovely weekend. It started off with a bridal brunch. Olivia got to sit at the table with the big girls and even got a special gift bag with amazingly thoughtful presents. I think she really liked being with the bigger girls and doing what they were doing and she even sat there without me for quite some time! It was a delight to meet so many of Grace's friends and family who love her just as much as I do. Next Olivia and played at a park and then tried to take a nap, but we were unsuccessful. So we drove to our hotel and what do you know, she fell asleep in the car! We got all checked in after her rest and went immediately to the pool! It was such fun with much jumping off the edge and even checking out the bubbly hot tub. After pool time we really spoiled ourselves and ordered a veggie quesadilla for room service! I think Olivia liked the veggies more than the tortilla and cheese. Of course we at on our luxurious king sized bed ;) Then we got ready for the rehearsal dinner. It didn't start until 7:30, which is usually book time before bedtime. Olivia was such a trooper and one of the girls, though. She chowed down on some salad and we got to chat with old friends (and play puzzles on the Kindle.) We heard a few toasts but by 9:30 we had to make our exit. We both fell right to sleep after we got back to the hotel. The next morning we enjoyed a lovely hotel breakfast followed by more pool time! Then we got ready for the wedding ceremony and went to a park to play! What gorgeous weather we had all weekend! Jeff met us at the church a little early so we had lunch together before the wedding. Olivia did a great job sitting in the pews playing on the Kindle. As Grace came in and we all stood up Olivia asked why. I told her we were going to watch Auntie Grace walk down the aisle in her pretty wedding dress. When Olivia saw her she said "that's not auntie grace, that's a queen." I died! We watched the rest of the ceremony from the "cry room" then headed to the reception. Olivia napped in the care again, poor girl. The reception was divine with hor's deurves, delicious food, wonderful cake, lots of conversation and even some running and playing. It was hard to leave but we were all ready to be back home after such a flurry of fun activities. Sunday was a nice family day, but still packed with things to do. We had play time, park time, planting flowers, grocery store, laundry and NO NAP. There have probably been less than five times that Olivia has had not one wink of sleep in her life. Even if she fights it she usually succumbs to exhaustion late in the afternoon or in a car at some point. Not so yesterday! We made it through, though, and now we are back to our regularly scheduled programming. Thanks, as always, for stopping by! xoxo

some of the best! (Steph, Sar, Tiff)

isn't Grace stunning?

Olivia Layne - 28 months

My sweet, sweet angel,

Well, where do I begin? Other than all the usual things I hope you already know. You continue to grow and change right before our eyes. Many people comment on how tall you are! It's true, when I look at you when you are at rest, I am amazed at how long and big you are. Before I know it you will be reaching the pedals of a car. Not too soon, my sweet, okay? You are becoming so brave it literally takes my breath away. You LOVE to climb! Sometimes, when you are playing with Daddy, I have to turn away because my stomach is in knots seeing you reach higher, go faster, jump farther. I WANT you to try new things and reach as far as you can, but that doesn't mean it's easy. I can't stand to see you get hurt, which seems inevitable as you stretch your arms higher to the sky, a little farther away from me. I hope you know I will catch you if you fall, I will kiss your ouchies and wipe your tears. Both now and forever. It's been such fun watching you blossom this way. We've been to the pool several times lately and you are having a blast jumping off the edge into our arms. You still don't like to get your face wet, but you think it's such fun to jump! Sometimes you don't even wait until we're totally ready, which of course freaks me out as I dive over to catch you before you go under. Isn't that something Mama's must always try to do? Catch our babies before they go under? I don't suppose we'll always succeed at that. But you better believe I will die trying if I must. Your vocabulary and grammar continue to grow. You always talk in sentences now, and quite often they are perfectly correct. I have to admit I love it when your yes sounds like yeth, though. Or when you say I catch it to you instead of I'll throw it to you. Nadxieli continues to do an amazing job teaching you. You are getting very good at sharing and taking turns, although who can expect a toddler to do that all the time? It seems you may have entered the phase of two year olds everyone talks about. Who could ever call you terrible, though? I prefer tricky ;) You have always had spunk and known what you want when you want where you want it. That is no different now, but your little brain is at the stage now where you just have a hard time explaining it in words, so screams and "no's" and hitting and tears sometimes take their place. It's true what they say, a toddler can experience extreme joy and extreme sadness or frustration or anger all in a 5 minute span. Your Daddy and I are sure working hard to show you our empathy and patience and love in the midst of those emotional roller-coasters. I hope with all my heart you can feel it and know it. I may not love the meltdowns, and I certainly don't know what I'm doing, but if they are helping us love you better, helping you grow into a stronger, more empathetic girl, then they are worth it. (let's just hope this phase doesn't last for too long! ;) No matter what, you are loved beyond measure. I can't wait to see what this next day brings.

Love,
Mama

(picture cooperation pending ;)