Fighting naps and frozen yogurt

I have no idea what is going on lately but Olivia has been refusing to nap and even at night, she fights sleep. It takes her over an hour to finally fall asleep, she doesn't cry but it's frustrating because I know that she needs sleep. I also feel bad for her, she's sitting in her crib probably bored out of her mind (maybe not but I know I would be) and I just want to get her out but I know I shouldn't. I've tried skipping her nap a few times but by 4 or 5, she's falling asleep on the floor or in her high chair so taking a nap is still necessary for her. Today, I went against the rules and got her out and took her with me to run some errands (hoping that I would tire her out). After we did that, we stopped and got some frozen yogurt. I let her pick what she wanted (that was interesting), I don't think she really knew what anything was but it was still fun. We ended up getting vanilla and a little bit of coconut topped with gummy bears, caramel filled chocolate turtles, pineapples and a few cherries. It sounds a little crazy but it was actually really good, we finished it pretty quick (Liv ate most of it). It's so funny when she eats something she likes because after every bite, she says "mmmm". I started out feeding her but after a few spoons, she decided to take over. I'm not scared of a mess so I let her go for it, she actually did really well. She is becoming a pro at using a spoon, she only spilled a little bit once or twice. She is getting to be really independent when she wants to be, it's pretty stinkin cute. When we got home, we played for a while and then had some lunch. I know, we probably should have had lunch before the frozen yogurt but that's okay. She is napping now so I guess going out for a while was a good idea. I did a few things around the house that I have been meaning to do for a while now so I feel quite accomplished. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day/night so tonight we are going to keep it low key and probably just hang out at home.

Livy's two year checkup

Today was a very busy day and I'm so glad it's over. This morning I took Olivia to playgroup, it was in a different room today and of course the room had stairs. All she wanted to do was climb up and down them, it was exhausting chasing after her. We were all sitting on the floor and she must have got confused because she ran up behind some lady and threw her arms around her neck and hugged her. The lady started laughing and said she was really cute but I was slightly embarrassed. I don't know if Liv thought it was me or if she just wanted to hug a random lady. After playgroup I had to get a bunch of errands done and I had to bring Olivia of course. I don't know if she is getting heavier or if I'm getting weaker but lugging her around is no joke. By the time we were done with errands, it was time for her appointment. That means that she skipped her nap, never a good idea. She weighs 21lbs and she is 32 inches long, that means she only gained 2lbs in six months. That bummed me out a bit but her doctor said she's still on her curve. She's between the 5th and 10th percentile for weight and height, so she is pretty proportionate. Since she is behind with speech, I asked about getting her hearing tested. He said it would be a good idea to get it checked so he referred her to a specialist. I have to call and make an appointment tomorrow. After a few more questions, it was time for her shot. I always dread when she has to get shots. She was so mad at the doctor, she swatted at his hand when he tried to put the band aid on her. It took me a while to calm her down and then she had to get her finger pricked for blood work. Good thing the nurse did it because the doctor was already on her bad side. After all the crying, she slept like a champ in the car and then for another two hours once we got home. She didn't have much of an appetite when she woke up and she was pretty cranky for the rest of the night. I put her to bed hours ago and she is still awake in her crib right now. She isn't crying but she just doesn't want to sleep. It was a long day, I can't wait to crawl into bed and get a good night's sleep (hopefully).

Blizzard or nah?

It snowed, again! It started on Monday and lasted until yesterday evening. It snowed probably a foot, maybe a little more. It was actually supposed to be a historic epic crazy blizzard but that didn't really happen. I'm not complaining though, I'm not a fan of the snow. It was way too windy out to let Olivia play outside so we just stayed in, I started to get a little stir crazy by the end of it. I wasn't able to go out looking for jobs so I just applied to a few places online. I'm hoping I can go this weekend but it's supposed to snow on Friday. Seriously, the snow needs to take a seat. The last few nights Olivia has been waking up in the middle of the night, ready to party. I'm pretty much exhausted right now but I have so much to do, all the little annoying things I haven't been able to get to because of the snow. This week/end it's time to catch up and cross everything off my list!

Snow day

I had so many errands to run yesterday and thanks to the snow, I got zero of them accomplished. It's so frustrating since the most important thing I had to do was job hunt. I haven't blogged about this but my job is closing (on February 2nd) for at least four months, I can't go that long without a job so I have to find another one. My new plan was to go searching on Tuesday (the only day my mom can watch Olivia) but of course, it's supposed to snow then too. I'm starting to get nervous, I know I shouldn't have waited this long to start looking but like I said in a previous post, it's been a crazy month. Olivia was happy to play in the snow yesterday though, at least someone enjoyed it.

 

Christmas cookie fail

I know I've been lacking with the posts but it's December and things have been crazy busy. Between Christmas shopping, decorating, wrapping presents and doing all the other little errands I have to do, I've been exhausted. I mentioned in my last post how I was up till 2am the other night putting together Olivia's play kitchen, I seriously can't wait until she opens it on Christmas! I also made her a playhouse out of the box that it came in. She loved it but it only last about five days, she ripped apart the roof and all the wrapping paper. I knew it wouldn't take long for that to happen but it's okay because it took up half the living room.

I'm not very crafty but I tried my best.

We've been doing some fun Christmas stuff lately. We took Olivia to a park that had a ton of light displays but she wasn't too interested. I also tried making Christmas cookies but it was a total fail, they taste good but they look horrible. Next year will be more fun because Olivia will understand a lot more and she can even help me decorate cookies, she will probably do a better job than me.
 

At least Olivia liked them.
 

I finally sent out our Christmas cards, I swear I'm so behind on everything this year. I usually have everything done by this point but I still need to get a few more gifts. Anyway, after Monday then I'll be done and I can just sit back and enjoy Christmas. I am so excited to see how Olivia reacts to everything this year!









Children's museum

Yesterday we took Olivia to a children's museum, I think I was more excited than she was. It was a bad idea to skip her nap because after about an hour she just wanted me to hold her and she was being really clingy. She had fun though, they had these "toddler caves" on one of the floors for 1-2 year olds. It was an under the sea theme, there were some tunnels and caves to run through, there was also a few slides. Paul put Liv on the slide and I was waiting at the bottom but she wasn't too excited about that, she was trying to grab the wall on the way down. The other floors were cool but they were for older kids. I think she was a little intimidated by the big kids because there was so many of them and they were running around and bumping into each other. Each room had a different theme, there was a room for music, cars, trains, boats, farm animals, dinosaurs and more that I can't think of right now. By the time we got home Olivia was exhausted and more than ready for a nap. I went out to lunch with my mom and we got some Christmas shopping done. I also got a ton of errands done that I've been meaning to do lately. I got in the mood to organize things and that doesn't happen often so I had to take advantage. The bad news is that today my whole entire body is sore and I have to work all afternoon/evening. Olivia has a runny nose again but I'm hoping it's just allergies and not a cold, she just got over a cold last week so if she's sick again that will be a bummer.

Liv was relentlessly trying to pop the water bubbles.

 Of course she's closing her eyes in all of the pictures that she took with me.



Last minute stress

Before Olivia came along, I was super organized. I had everything planned out, I always got things done extra early. I would buy my Halloween costume months in advance and I never really worried about it. Now, I feel like everything I do is last minute and rushed, I guess having a kid will do that to you. The last few days I have been scrambling to get things done. It's frustrating because now that I have a job, on my days off I have to do everything I couldn't get done on the days I worked (laundry, dishes, shopping, errands). I finally figured out Olivia's costume so I went to buy it and it was sold out, I had to go to another store and get her a different version of what I wanted. She was excited though, when she saw it she started yelling out what it was (you'll see soon). I tried it on her when we got home and it's so darn cute! Next year, I will be prepared and get it earlier, although Halloween is still a few weeks away but I guess people don't want to end up like me. I also had to get myself a costume since we are having a Halloween party at work but I didn't put much effort into it, it's just something I threw together quick. I definitely didn't buy an actual costume because they were all so expensive and way too short for me (to put it politely), I would probably get fired for that. Next weekend we are going to a pumpkin patch, I think Olivia will enjoy it much more this year (last year she was unimpressed). I really love getting pumpkins and carving them, I'm like a little kid during the holidays (the complete opposite of Paul, he's a grouch). I think I'm going to have Olivia paint a little pumpkin because obviously she can't carve one yet. I just realized that she can eat candy this year so I won't get to steal all of it, bummer. That's probably a good thing though, right?

The other day Rooney (our cat) was playing with Liv's rubber ducky, he was pushing it around with his paw and running after it. Olivia thought it was the most hilarious thing in the world, she was cracking up so hard that she almost fell over. She didn't stop laughing for a good five minutes, it was the cutest thing ever. No matter how many times I've made her laugh, she has never laughed that hard before. She really loves the cats, all she wants to do lately is chase them around and play with them. She's also been hugging them a lot lately but they aren't into it.

Shopping for cats.