Party animal

It was a pretty busy weekend and of course, I got sick again. I woke in the middle of the night on Friday with that horrible pain on the side of my face again, my teeth hurt so bad that they started to feel numb. I took some medicine and used the heating pad. I was up from 4am until almost 6 and then I finally started to feel a little better. I didn't get much sleep though because Liv woke up at 7. We had a birthday party on Saturday and Olivia had a blast. When we first got there, I had to wake her up and she didn't want me to put her down. I didn't want her to cling to me the whole time, I wanted her to have fun so I put her down and she cried for a few minutes but then she was fine. She was jumping with another little girl in the bounce house for a while, she loved it but then bunch of older kids ran in and they were being rowdy. They kept knocking Olivia over and two kids actually fell on top of her, she didn't seem to care but I was getting nervous. The bounce house ended up deflating, I was actually kind of glad because I think she would have gotten hurt if she stayed in there. They also had a little petting zoo and pony rides, of course Olivia went wild when she saw the animals. She was chasing them all around and trying to catch the chickens, she was even petting the sheep. At one point it got a little too close and she backed away very quickly, her face was priceless. She got to ride the pony twice and I'm pretty sure that was her favorite part, she kept saying more but there were a lot of other kids there. I didn't feel great all day but I stuck it out for Liv, it makes me happy to see her having such a good time. She was so exhausted when we got home that she went to bed at 6pm, so of course this morning she woke up at 6am. I was so beat, I had to take a nap when she did. After our nap, we all went out to lunch and then we took her to the park. It was so disgustingly hot outside that we couldn't stay for too long. She had fun on the swings though, she really loves playing in the sand too. We just relaxed for the rest of the night, I still don't feel great but definitely better than yesterday. I've been sick for so long that I feel like I'm never going to get better. This cough that I have is seriously brutal. At least Olivia is doing better, she doesn't seem like she's sick at all anymore. Back to our routine tomorrow, I have pretty long hours this week so I definitely need to get some rest tonight.

Mother's Day

I know Mother's Day was four days ago but things have been pretty hectic around here, I'll talk all about that in the next post. I woke up on Sunday with horrible pain on the right side of my face, I knew immediately that I had a sinus infection. I really wanted to avoid going to the doctor so I started doing all the home remedies that I've heard about. I actually took the advice of a friend and ran out to buy a Neti Pot. It was a little different than what I was expecting, definitely not a pleasant experience or feeling but it did help a little bit. What helped the most was using a heating pad on my face, the pain was almost gone and then I took some Tylenol which took care of it completely. We went out to lunch with my family, the restaurant was packed so were there for a few hours. Olivia was really good for the most part, she started to get antsy towards the end. After lunch, we stopped at a bakery and got some cookies, Olivia picked all the M&M's off and let me have the cookie part. It was a great day but when we got home, I started to feel sick again. I used the Neti Pot and heating pad for the second time and was able to fall asleep, I felt much better on Monday morning. Anyway, on Mother's Day I always feel very grateful. I've always felt lucky to have such an amazing mother who would go above and beyond for me and now I feel lucky because I have a daughter of my own. It's hard to understand the love your mother has for you until you have your own child but now I totally get it. I think having a baby has made my relationship with my mom stronger. I always look to her for advice and she is quick to help, whether it's to babysit, give me parenting tips or just listen to me while I vent. We are very close and I know not everyone has that type of relationship with their mom so I don't ever take it for granted. I hope all of you had a great Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to my mom, you showed me unconditional love

and I wouldn't be the mother I am today without you. I love you.

This little woman changed my life in the best way possible.

I am so proud to be her mother. No matter how many challenges

we face, it will always be worth it. I have so much love for her.

Being silly at the restaurant with her cousin.

Some serious venting

I haven't blogged in a while so I have a little catching up to do. I'll start with the bad, Thursday was seriously one of the worst days I've had in a really long time. I had an appointment about twenty minutes away and I had to bring Olivia with me. I left my house at 2pm, I didn't have to be there until 3 so I figured I would have plenty of time. About halfway there, we got stuck in a traffic jam. It wasn't just slow traffic, we were at a dead stop for a good fifteen minutes. I called and said that I would be late and they said that was fine. Another hour went by and we had barely moved. I tried taking four different detours and every single way was backed up with traffic. They called me back and told me that I would have to reschedule my appointment, I was so annoyed because I really didn't want to do that. Thursdays are my only day off so I had to reschedule a bunch of other things to fit it in, I'm so busy every Thursday for the next few months. Anyway, I turned around and started driving home and of course we hit traffic again. At this point, I started crying hysterically. I just couldn't deal with it anymore, the stress finally got to me and I just let it out. I could hear Olivia in the backseat doing her nervous laugh so I composed myself and told her that it was okay. When we got home, I went to grab her out of her seat and noticed that she threw up everywhere. This is the third time that she threw up within the span of a month. I called the doctor because I was starting to become concerned and he said that she most likely got motion sickness from the traffic. We didn't even get home till 5pm. So I basically wasted my entire afternoon driving for absolutely no reason at all. Three hours just sitting in the car, it makes me cringe even thinking about it now. Once we got home, I had to give Liv another bath (I already gave her one that morning), do her laundry and clean her car seat (not as easy task). On a good note, her therapy visit went really well. Her speech therapist said that she noticed some improvement with Olivia since she started daycare. She said that her attention span is better and that she was gesturing along more while they were singing songs. She has been doing great at daycare, she plays with the kids and even eats at the table with them. She still cries when I drop her off but most of the kids do. The teacher told me some interesting things too, she said that Olivia says a few words (that I haven't heard her say at home) while she's there, like "eat" and "ball". I wonder why she talks more at school than she does at home. I also heard that she has a little boyfriend, she kept kissing one of the boys in her class on the head. I told Paul about it and he wasn't too happy, I think it's cute though. Yesterday they had a Mother's Day brunch so I went with her and it was really sweet. The presents that she made me just melted my heart. When I had to leave, she got really upset but I knew that was going to happen. I've been sick all week, I don't know if it's just allergies kicking my butt or if I actually have a cold. Today has been spent mostly at home, we went to the store to pick up a few things and got some ice cream for dinner. For the first time ever, I ordered Olivia her own ice cream cone. She made a huge mess but she thoroughly enjoyed it. Tomorrow should be fun, we are going out to lunch with my family for Mother's Day, I just hope I feel a little better.

Totally worth the mess.

An awesome breakthrough

I'm overly excited to say that daycare went much better today than it has the past few weeks! Olivia cried when I dropped her off but I was anticipating that. She kept crying for almost an hour and then she finally stopped. When I asked the teacher how she did, I wasn't expecting a good report. Every day she tells me that Liv had an emotional day but today she said that Liv actually had a good day! Even though she cried here and there, she was mostly running around and playing with the kids. She was smiling and laughing, hearing that just melted my heart. I am so glad that she is finally coming around to the idea of being without me and having fun with the other kids. The best part is that she ate her lunch and snacks, I didn't have to worry about her being ridiculously hungry when we got home. I am really shocked that she had such a good day but I'm extremely happy about it. I feel like a weight has been lifted. I can stop stressing so much now, I hope it only gets better from here on out.

At least she's not crying!

Good news.. kinda

I'm happy to report that Olivia hasn't thrown up since Friday. The bad news is that she still cries all day at daycare and barely eats or drinks anything. I'm wondering how long she is going to be stubborn for because it's been really stressful, on both of us. Luckily today was my day off so I took her to the park and then we went for a walk. She really loves being outside (except when she's at school) and she would stay out at all day if she could. There were a lot of kids at the park today (including some annoying teenagers). When I was pushing Liv on the swing, another little girl was laughing so Olivia started fake laughing. It was really funny, she just wanted to copy the girl. She's silly, she makes me so happy no matter how bad my day is going. I know I've been neglecting this blog a bit but I've been super busy. My job is absolutely exhausting and when I'm home, I like to spend as much time as possible with Liv. I have a lot I want to post though so hopefully I will have some time this weekend.

Puke and other disturbing things

Yesterday I had to work but my mom was home to watch Livy so she didn't go to daycare, which I'm sure she was happy about. A lot of the kids were sick with a stomach bug so I was hoping that we wouldn't catch it. Olivia seemed to be in good spirits when I got home. I gave her a bath, fed her dinner and put her to bed. At around 9:30pm I heard her fussing in her crib so I yelled upstairs to Paul so he could check on her. I heard him yelling to me about something, I ran upstairs and Olivia had puked everywhere. There was so much, it was all over her sheets, stuffed animals and even in her hair. I got her out of bed and gave her another bath while Paul cleaned up the mess in her crib. I felt really bad for her so I let her come downstairs with me and watch TV while I threw her stuff in the wash. After a little while she seemed to be okay so I put her back to bed, she fell asleep pretty quickly. I was exhausted at that point so as soon as her stuff was done drying, I went to bed. At around 2am, I heard her crying again so I went in to check on her and she was gagging. I picked her up and tried to calm her down but she was really upset. I don't want to gross everyone out so I'll just say, it was coming out of both ends and it was bad. Stomach bugs are the worst, she was just miserable and there was a lot of cleaning up involved. This morning I gave her some toast and water, I am going to hold off on giving her milk until tomorrow. She didn't want to eat much at lunchtime either, she only had a few spoons of soup and half a banana. She's napping right now, I'm hoping that this bug isn't going to last more than 24 hours. I'm also stressed out because I had to miss work today, I really could use the money but Olivia comes first and it will always be that way. It seems like I can't catch a break lately. I got a call from the hospital saying that we owe $3,000 for her overnight stay in January (when she had RSV). I called twice a few months ago to make sure that if the claim was denied, we wouldn't be responsible for the payment and they assured me that we wouldn't be. The claim was resubmitted and approved so now we are responsible for the deductible. The lady I spoke to on the phone today was so rude, she kept saying things like "You didn't think you would have to pay for services rendered?!". At one point I got mad and I told her she needed to stop talking down to me because I didn't appreciate it. Whoever I spoke to before obviously didn't explain things correctly. Anyway, that put me in a bad mood. We already have seven or eight other medical bills for Liv that we are struggling with, it just seems to keep piling on. I told them to add it to my long tab and I'll pay what I can every month, that's the best I can do. It's funny that they only help you out if you make less than $50K per year but they don't take into account all the debt you have from a medically complex child. I broke down and started crying at one point, something I rarely do. Olivia saw me, she got upset and started crying too. I gave her a hug and that calmed us both down, she is such a sweetheart when she wants to be. The cherry on top was this morning when I dropped my phone on the ground and the screen cracked, seriously though, why?! I spent $50 on a stupid OtterBox and obviously it didn't help at all, that really annoys me. I understand it's my fault, I'm clumsy and I drop my phone all the time but that's exactly why I invested in a case that would help prevent my screen from breaking. That was a fail, I'm going to try Gorilla glass this time but I'm not expecting much. I have to pay $170 for a replacement phone, I have insurance but that's the deductible. I know this was just a long post of me ranting but the stress has been building up for a while now. Now I am just keeping my fingers crossed that I don't catch the stomach bug and that Olivia feels better soon.



Stuck in the foam pit

Yesterday it rained but we still went to playgroup. Olivia was not in the best mood, she has been hitting again and it's really frustrating. One little girl was trying to share her ball and Liv started pushing her away. I don't know why, maybe it was just her bad mood. Sometimes she loves playing with kids but yesterday wasn't one of those days. I took her aside and told her that she had to stop hitting and then I said to her "If you hit someone again, we're going to leave. Do you want to leave?" and she looked at me and said "Yeah!", happy as ever. I almost started to laugh but I didn't let her see that, she even ran over and got her coat and backpack. I thought she was going to get upset and start behaving but I guess she really didn't care if we stayed or not. Today was another rainy day so I took Olivia to this place down the street called Sky Zone. It's basically a bunch of trampolines and a foam pit. On Friday and Sunday mornings they have toddler time for kids five and under. I was glad because I would be nervous that she would get knocked over by older kids. Although, some of the four and five year olds were a bit rough. There was one boy following her around and every ball she picked up, he would take it from her. She would scream so loud at him and then he would run away but a few minutes later, he would be back. It was a little annoying because some of the moms weren't even paying attention to what their kids were doing. I don't follow Olivia around constantly but I always watch her from a safe distance. One boy was yelling "mommy" for a good five minutes before his mom finally looked over at him. Anyway, Liv liked the trampolines even though she can't exactly jump. She tries her best, she bends her knees and bounces but her feet never come off the floor. The staff was pretty nice, a few of them played with Liv. They would build up a tower of foam blocks and let her knock them down. The foam pit was pretty cool, I think that was her favorite part. She was crawling all around it, at one point she started sinking and I could barely see her. I had to jump in and get her because she was stuck. I had a hard time crawling through there, obviously I'm not in the best shape. When we got out, I realized that she lost a sock. They make you pay for Sky Zone socks ($2) but luckily they let us have a replacement for free. We saw a few kids from playgroup there but Olivia didn't really care and neither did they, they were all off in their own little worlds. All in all, it was a fun time and I will definitely bring Livy again soon. She had an awesome nap when we got home so that makes me love it even more. When Paul got home from work, we all went out for dinner. Liv ate before we left but she had fun coloring (on the coasters, oops). She stole some of Paul's broccoli, she doesn't take after me because I hate most vegetables. It's great that she likes them though! It was quite and eventful day, I am off the relax now.

Distracting a toddler

We've been going to the playground a lot lately and loving it. We saw the same little boy there that we saw at the library (library adventure), he didn't remember Olivia but he kept saying how cute she was. He's a funny kid, Liv saw a dog and started running towards it and he said "don't go over there, dogs eat babies!". Then he was chasing Liv around and she was having a blast. Yesterday we just hung out at home in the morning and after Olivia's nap, I decided it was time to get out of the house. I needed to pick up a few things so we went to Target (my favorite place). I could walk around that store for hours, I got what we needed and a few things we didn't need. I let Liv hold a little cat plush and she hugged it the whole time. I was going to buy it for her but when I scanned it, it was $10! I can't believe it was that much and it was just a small stuffed animal, I figured it would be closer to $5. She got a little upset when I took it away but I gave her a box of goldfish to hold onto and distract her (works every time). When we got home we played outside for a while, I brought out Liv's car and ride on toy and she had fun. Today was a very gloomy and rainy day so we didn't leave the house. Luckily I got to nap when Olivia did, it wasn't for long but it was much needed. It's supposed to rain the rest of the week so that's kind of a bummer. It's hard to keep Olivia entertained when we are stuck inside, she gets bored and I hate when she watches too much TV. Anyway, off to relax and catch up on a few shows.

Happy Easter!

I wanted to post this yesterday but I just didn't have the energy, Easter was a lot of fun! When Olivia woke up in the morning, she got her basket from the Easter bunny. She took everything out and wanted to open it all immediately. She ate an entire (almost) chocolate bunny but she wouldn't try the Peeps, I'm sure she would love them but she was being stubborn. I wanted her to take a nap before we went to my aunt's house but she refused (too much chocolate). She played in her crib for over an hour and I finally gave up and got her out (otherwise we would have been late). I was slightly irritated because I knew that if she didn't nap, she would be cranky and it was going to be a long day. She fell asleep in the car (about ten minutes before we got there) and she was annoyed when we woke her up. As soon as she saw her cousins though, her mood changed back to happy! She gave them hugs and kept following them around, it's really cute how much she loves them. She also loved getting all of her baskets from everyone but she liked my nephews toy cars the best. She ate more food than I thought she would and I ate more food than I should have. It was raining out so we had to do the egg hunt in the basement, kind of a bummer because the pictures would have been much nicer outside. Olivia wasn't into it this year, she found one egg and then she just wanted to sit down and open it. She liked playing with the jelly beans inside and she was content with just one egg. All of the kids were running around and one of them accidently knocked Liv over and she fell backwards and hit her head on the floor. She was crying so loud and hugging me for a while but afterwards she seemed fine. She went right back to playing but after a while, she started to get fussy again. I knew it would happen but it took a little longer than I thought so by that time we were getting ready to leave anyway. I'm glad she didn't fall asleep on the way home, it's a long drive so I expected her to but she stayed awake. Once we got home, I gave her a quick snack and put her to bed. It didn't take long for her to fall asleep, that rarely happens. She went to bed earlier than normal so this morning she woke up bright and early. I think I am going to stick to this new bedtime though because she didn't even fight her nap today. She fell asleep within minutes and it was awesome. I took so many pictures but if I put them all up, this post would be way too long so I'll just share a few of my favorites.

 

 

 

 

Happy Easter everyone!

End of the week fun

It got a little warmer out on Thursday afternoon so I brought Olivia outside and I pulled out some chalk from last year. I think I had more fun than she did, she kept handing me different colors to draw pictures for her. Then she went around and drew lines through all of my masterpieces. In true Olivia fashion, she wanted to hold all six pieces of chalk at once. By the time we were done, her pants were covered in chalk dust. Once Paul got home from work, we stayed outside for a while and then decided to go out for dinner. Liv got to sit next to me, they had a mini high chair that went right into the booth. She didn't eat much for lunch so she was hungry by the time we got to the restaurant. She kept doing the sign for eat and the food was taking a while so I let her have some goldfish. For dinner she got pizza and french fries (I know, super healthy), she was eating great until I got my food. Once she saw my salad, that's all she wanted and she didn't touch her food after that. As always, it was a little frustrating. I don't mind sharing with her but I also don't think that eating lettuce and tomatoes for dinner is very filling. I was too nervous about her choking to give her any of my steak. Anyway, despite her picky eating, it was a fun night.

Yesterday, Liv and I met up with my friend and her daughter (who is only three months younger than Liv) at a bounce house place. It was like Monkey Joe's but there wasn't an arcade area. There was a much bigger slide too and Olivia wanted to go on it about thirty times. I went with her a few times and that was a good workout. She went up by herself but I had to walk behind her and she was pretty slow. It was a little more work than it was worth. The last time she wanted to go, I just didn't have anymore energy so an older girl (around ten) said she would bring her up. I said okay but then I was so nervous, I kept saying "make sure she doesn't fall!", she did good though. Olivia loved running around and going in all the different bounce houses. She didn't want to leave, we will have to go back soon.

 Olivia kept hugging the dog, it was really cute.

High five for the Easter bunny

Over the weekend, we did lots of fun Easter stuff. On Friday, we dyed eggs. Well, I did most of the dying and Olivia added stickers and played with the eggs. She had more fun taking them out of the bowl and putting them back in over and over than actually making them look pretty. Then she learned how to break them, she started to take off pieces of the shell and that was the end of that. On Saturday we went to the mall to get her picture taken with the Easter bunny. I wasn't sure how she was going to react because Santa did not go well this year. She didn't cry with him but she just wanted to get off his lap immediately. The line was much shorter than it was for Santa, there were only two people ahead of us so I figured it would be quick. Nope, they wanted their infant son to smile and that wasn't happening so they kept trying but eventually gave up. It took almost ten minutes and it was finally our turn. Olivia did really well, she even smiled! She definitely liked the Easter bunny better than Santa. I kind of thought she would since she loves animals. After she got her picture taken, they gave her some jellybeans and she even gave the bunny a high five. When we were done with that, I brought her to the play area so she could run around for a while. She absolutely loved it, just like last time. Paul hates the play area because there's always a lot of kids and most of them are bigger than Olivia so he was getting pretty nervous. I don't worry because I've seen her get knocked down before, she gets right back up and continues to run around and have fun. We also took her to the pet store and she had a blast in there. She was going wild when she saw the rabbits, she wanted to hug one so bad, she was pressing her face up against the glass. The mall isn't my favorite place to go but it was a really fun day, I'm so glad we took her.

 

Library adventure

I took Olivia to the library today and it was quite interesting. There were a few kids there and they all were really sweet. This one little boy kept talking to Liv, he was probably around four years old. He even came up to me and told me that Olivia was so cute. They were playing together for a while and then Liv sat down and was playing with a toy carrot but I guess he wanted it. He told me he really wanted to play with it so I told him to go ask her if she would share. I watched him go over to her and she just ignored him and then put the carrot in her lap. He came running up to me again and said "she doesn't want to share, I asked nicely but she just put it on her penis". I burst out laughing, his mom looked at me from across the room like "oh no, what did he say now". It was so funny, I guess his mom hasn't told him that girls have different parts (trying to keep this G rated). Anyway, Olivia had fun and it's always nice to get out of the house. It's been pretty cold out and it's supposed to snow tomorrow, that seriously bums me out. Tomorrow is the first day of spring, snow is unacceptable!

Left: Sitting at the table like a big girl.

Right: Hiding from me because she didn't want to eat lunch.

Hurry up spring!

Am I the only mom that forgets she's doing laundry? The other day it took me almost six hours to do one load. I forgot to switch the clothes from the washer to the dryer for almost two hours so I had to run it through the wash again. After that, I forgot again! I guess I need to start setting a timer on my phone or something. Okay, that was just a quick little rant about my forgetfulness. Anyway, it was such a sunny and warm (well.. warmer) day on Wednesday so I decided we should go to the playground. I was really excited but when we got there, the entrance was blocked off by a huge snow pile. I was pretty bummed, especially since it's the only playground close by. I ended up taking Olivia for a walk, it was great being outside. We are both ready for the spring, warm weather just makes me happy. I am not a big fan of the winter and I'm pretty sure Liv isn't fond of being cooped up in the house either. Yesterday was pretty nice out too, just a little bit colder than Wednesday. Olivia is really missing playgroup (it starts again in two weeks) so I took her to the library and she had fun there. We didn't go until after her nap, it was around 4 o'clock so there were a lot of bigger kids running around. Liv kept yelling in excitement and one of the boys kept covering his ears, she thought it was funny. She loves being around other kids, it's really cute to watch. She has such a silly and fun personality, I love it.

Major disaster

It's been a busy few days, I feel like I always say that but I guess that's just life with a toddler. On Friday, Paul & I were able to have a date night. We went out to dinner and it was so yummy, I ate way too much but it was nice to get out alone together, we rarely get to do that anymore. On Saturday we all went out to dinner with my family, it was a really fun night. I ate way too much again but I didn't even care, it was totally worth it. Olivia was excited to spend some time with her cousins, she kept hugging them over and over. I loved seeing how happy they all were to be playing together, it made my heart melt. Olivia definitely needs a sibling soon! It was funny though because at one point I looked around the table and all three of the kids were on our phones. It's nice to have something to keep them entertained at restaurants, Olivia gets antsy after a while and it's a huge help. Today we had an appointment in the morning to get Olivia's two year old pictures taken. It was a major disaster, she cried and screamed the entire time. I don't really know why she was so upset, she doesn't even cry that much at the doctors office. It might be because I had to wake her up this morning, maybe she was overtired. The photographer was very patient and I was thankful for that because it was a little embarrassing. Her eight month old pictures went much smoother, she didn't cry once. Somehow, we got a few good pictures and I ordered them so I am really excited but they wont be ready until next week. I'm glad we wont be taking professional pictures again until she's three and then once she's in school, I wont have to deal with it (good luck to them). Yeah, so that was exhausting. I finally got her to nap so I'm going to take advantage of this time and eat something (before she wakes up and starts destroying the house).

Kids these days.

Birthday party

We had Olivia's birthday party yesterday and it was really fun. The theme this year was Dora the Explorer (her favorite show). It was pretty time consuming setting up all the tables, chairs and decorations but my mom helped me and it looked great when we were finished. There was a snow storm on Saturday so the parking lot was not even plowed and the walkway wasn't shoveled either. Paul had to do it by himself and he did a good job, thankfully he got it done quick too. Olivia got a cold on Saturday so she wasn't feeling 100% yesterday morning but once she got to her party, she forgot all about being sick (until we got home). Unfortunately, due to the snow and all the bugs going around, not everyone could make it but it was still a great day! Olivia loved running around and chasing the other kids, it was awesome for me because they were keeping her entertained. I also brought a bubble machine (my mom's idea) and it was a huge hit. All the kids were super excited to pop all the bubbles and run into them. Olivia loved the bike that we got her, she wanted to get on it right away, she was even sitting on it today while watching TV. The party went perfect but cleaning up wasn't fun, my back is so sore today. Liv didn't eat much all day since she was too busy playing so I was a little stressed out about that. I tried to feed her when we got home but since she didn't take a nap, she was falling asleep in her high chair. It was a pretty exhausting day but it was all worth it and I'm so glad Olivia had fun. We both slept in this morning and just relaxed for most of the day.

Figured it out

Have I mentioned that it's been snowing on and off pretty much all week? No, well just assume that it's always snowing here and I'm so over it. A little update on some stuff I've been posting about, the bottle situation is going much better (knock on wood). Olivia is so particular so I had to find a way that would work for her and I think I got it figured out. She will only drink milk if it's slightly warm, in an open cup, with a straw. That's how I've been giving it to her the last few days and she likes it again (no bottle necessary). I'm so glad she's been drinking it and I hope she continues. Thank goodness that I kept trying because I was so close to just giving up and giving her a bottle again. Oh, I still haven't found a job, that's been pretty stressful. If I cant find something by the end of the month then I'm going to just apply anywhere and everywhere, even if it's just temporary. On a better note, yesterday was a fun day! I took Olivia to my sisters house so she could play with her cousins. They had a good time, Olivia is obsessed with all the trucks and cars they have. Today we went to playgroup, Liv's favorite part is the bubbles. Actually, all the kids go wild when the teacher does bubbles, it's funny to watch. I'm exhausted, it's been a really long week (it seems that way at least). Tomorrow I'm going to the movies with my friend, I really need a break so I'm looking forward to it! Right now I have to go finish laundry and then it's off to bed.

Farmer Liv.

Stensland family Christmas

I can't believe that Christmas came and went so fast. We spent Christmas Eve at my aunts house, we ate dinner, played games and opened presents. We didn't get home until after 11pm and I stayed up playing Santa. I couldn't even sleep because I was so excited to see Olivia's reaction in the morning. She was pretty excited but a little overwhelmed, I think Santa I may have gone a bit overboard this year. Every time she opened a present, she just wanted to play with it and she wasn't too interested in opening the next one. Next year I am going to try my best to keep it a bit more simple but it's very hard to control myself. After presents, we ate breakfast and went over my sisters house to spend the day. It was a lot of fun but it all went by so quick. I hope everyone had a great holiday and I'll leave you with some pictures.

 

 

 

Keeping a toddler entertained

It's getting harder and harder to keep Olivia entertained, especially now that it's cold outside. I get bored being stuck in the house too so I can understand. I had to finish my Christmas shopping yesterday so I brought her along (I'm finally done by the way). After that, I decided we needed to do something fun so I took her to Monkey Joe's. I knew she would like it but she was much more excited than I anticipated, she was running around like a crazy person. I could barely keep up with her, I wasn't prepared for that. They had a huge slide but she is still a little young to climb all the way up by herself so I took her on it and I hoped that she wouldn't be scared. I couldn't have been more wrong, she absolutely loved it! Of course she made me take her on it another ten times. I know I'm not that old but I was huffing and puffing after the third time, I need to exercise more often! It was really funny to watch her in the bouncy houses because half the time she was running around and the other half, she was falling over and couldn't get back up. I'm glad we went early because there was only a few other kids there so we didn't have to wait to use anything and there weren't any big kids to knock her down. They have an area specifically for toddlers but Olivia liked going around to everything. The best part was when we got home and she ate a ton of food (an entire sandwich, half a banana, yogurt and a cookie). That's a new record I think, then she took an epic nap. I guess she worked up an appetite and wore herself out. Anyway, It was a really fun place and I'm glad we went, I can't wait to bring her again!