The Hall Family Tree

Our Family Tree Has Moved

2010-08-05T22:10:00.002-05:00

For various reasons, I've had to move the blog to a new address. The old posts are all at the new place, and this one will stay up and running for the next few months in case you forget to save the address.

Here it is: http://ourvirtualscrapbook.blogspot.com/

It's a permanent move, so update your bookmarks!

Lookout World, Here She Comes

2010-07-12T15:02:00.007-05:00

So I realize that I haven't updated this thing in two months, but there are two reasons for that:

1. Have you spent the day with a toddler lately? I haven't had a whole lot of free time to do things like sit, much less think and type things out on a computer.
2. What precious little free time I did have during May and half of June I spent with Becca and Aden. They have since moved to the Vancouver, British Columbia area, where my brother-in-law is busy working on some big name movies.
2b. After they left, I spent two solid weeks feeling very sorry for myself, which precluded cheerfully describing life without my sister and nephew.

But now that life is back to normal and we have reached another milestone, it's time to get back on the blogging wagon. I'll be posting some things from the last couple of months that I don't want to forget over the next couple of weeks, but right now, let's get a drum roll please... Olivia is walking!

This is a short clip from this morning -- she has been really hard to catch on camera so far.

Olivia Walks! from Liz Hall on Vimeo.

All that talk of Independence and Freedom for the fourth of July must have really resonated with Olivia, because she took her first solo steps on Monday, July 5th. We had a long weekend, which we spent at the beach with Gran and Pops, and C had a brilliant idea that led to Olivia's confidence. She's been cruising for 6 months and walking around holding my hand for at least the last 4 weeks but was afraid to let go. So C put his belt around her, underneath her arms, so she would feel supported. After a few tries, it worked! Then he started just holding onto her shirt, and on Monday night, he was able to let go and Olivia kept going for about 10 steps before she realized she was walking (and immediately sat down). So she's practiced all week, and today we went and bought her a new pair of shoes to celebrate.

I have to say, as excited as I am about the walking, it will take some getting used to. I've turned around no fewer than three times already today and nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw Olivia barreling towards me. She is so fast already, sometimes she is actually running!

It seems that walking has turned her tongue loose also, because her talking has increased exponentially in the last week. She can clearly say Hello, Bye, Baby, Dog, Momma, & Pappy and there are a couple of things that I understand (but aren't as clear) such as Bellybutton and Bath.

Let's Hear It For The Boy

2010-05-06T06:45:00.001-05:00

Remember that we recently visited Aunt E and Uncle T? Well, while we were there, I recorded this gem below. I can't remember what made my Better Half break into this particular song, but he was so funny that we were all in tears laughing. I think that we Old Folks were trying to explain to the Younguns something related to Kevin Bacon or the 80s, neither of which they know anything about.

I would say that this is highly unusual for him which made it all the funnier, but that would be a lie. My husband routinely delights Olivia and I with this sort of performance, which is one of the many reasons that I love him and am married to him. Our house is so much fun!

Let's Hear It For The Boy from Liz Hall on Vimeo.

Our Gardener Isn't Afraid...

2010-04-28T06:21:00.000-05:00

To get dirty! I have been working in our flowerbeds quite a bit this spring, trying to enjoy more time outdoors and improve the look of our yard. We purchased a fig tree and some blueberry bushes that are already old enough to produce fruit -- by the end of the summer, Olivia will be helping me to pick fruit in our own yard!

I've also been tending to our irises and adding some perennials to bring a little color to the yard. I usually try to get out in the garden during nap time, but occasionally Olivia works out there with me.
She is very serious about dirt work. She moved small piles of clay/dirt into the empty trays...

And then emptied them.

I also suspect that she was taste testing when my back was turned. Her face was smeared with a lovely mixture of spit, runny nose and mud.

No one will ever be able to say she's afraid to get her hands dirty.

Liz & Liv

2010-04-27T13:06:00.000-05:00

I have no idea what we were doing or who even took these photos, but I figured I would post them. We are hot and sweaty, but were having a good time!

The Best Seat in the House

2010-04-26T06:02:00.001-05:00

Spring Cuteness

2010-04-25T12:38:00.000-05:00

We have friends who have three daughters, and they have been passing down the clothes that their little girls have long since outgrown to Olivia. It has been so much fun to have new, adorable outfits to wear without the guilt that comes with spending all of that money!

She also has enough fuzz sprouting on her head to clip a bow in there now. That's not to say she leaves it in there, but sometimes she doesn't mind accessorizing.

Now that she has started crawling around a bit (don't worry, she still mostly scoots), Olivia loves to play on the sofa. She dives and rolls and climbs and crawls, all the while squealing and laughing.

Visiting Aunt E & Uncle T

2010-04-24T12:46:00.002-05:00

Shortly after Christmas, I told my sister to pick a weekend this spring and we would come visit. They live in Montgomery and have settled into a precious apartment and decent jobs since getting married last summer, and I wanted to see what life is like for them at home instead of making them drive to see us. So in late March we loaded up and headed to the Home Of The Nearest Red Robin.

We stayed up late talking, visited their church with them on Sunday morning, window shopped at the mall and went to see where both E & T work. It was a great weekend.

Of course, we didn't pull out the camera at all until Sunday afternoon before we left to drive home because we were too busy having fun.

I wasn't supposed to get the snowman in the picture, whoops. That was the only way we could get Olivia to look in the general direction of the camera. Uncle T was watching March Madness in the background, although he isn't actually looking at the TV in this photo.

We also ate very famous chilidogs somewhere downtown and enjoyed fabulously overpriced burgers at the aforementioned Red Robin. Can't wait to do it all again!

Best Buddies

2010-04-14T07:04:00.000-05:00

Aw.

One.

2010-04-13T07:51:00.001-05:00

Aden and Olivia, Sitting in a...

2010-04-12T17:44:00.000-05:00

...Buggy. Shopping at Target and getting kinda huggy.

Aden is King of the Hug these days, and he loves to give them to Olivia. How cute are they?

The Bathroom Wrap Up

2010-04-12T10:11:00.007-05:00

So, I guess most folks who read this were at Olivia's birthday party and saw the finished bathroom, but I wanted to tie up this loose end, especially since we are so proud of our finished product. I believe my last update left off at tiling the shower surround, so here you can see that completed. The tiles are a biscuit/ivory color, and the accent trim is a mosaic of taupes and one with just a hint of blue to it. (You can kind of see it in the close up of the wall cubby -- did C do an awesome job with those or what??)

We went Old School with the floor tiles -- they are small hexagons that are a blend of neutral browns.

Can you see the touch of blue? The wall color really brings it out and ties the whole thing together. I'd like to say that I realized that when I picked out these little glass tiles, but that would be a lie.

We also put up wainscot that was painted to match the biscuit tiles and our trim throughout the house. As you can see, the beadboard starts at the same level as the mosaic shower trim, providing a clean visual line in the final product.

C got to use the nail gun and air compressor he got for Christmas to finish this part of the project, which was a happy thing for everyone but Olivia. She was not a fan of the nail gun.

See how nice the lines look when they match? I did 90% of the painting in the bathroom, for two reasons: 1) I like to, and wasn't able to do any of our home painting while pregnant for Olivia and 2) I am home during the week.

Next we installed the vanity and commode. I was very particular about the vanity because this bathroom is tiny, making storage important. We found this cabinet with several drawers, and we can still store bath towels in the single cabinet.

And finally, here is the finished product. The mirror is a medicine cabinet, which also provides extra storage space, and matches all of the oiled bronze plumbing fixtures (which we have throughout the house).

So now that we have two working bathrooms again, you're all invited to come visit for a weekend!

As Heard On Sesame Street

2010-04-01T09:36:00.004-05:00

While I was making Olivia's breakfast this morning, I turned the TV on to PBS. She likes to dance to the music on the children shows and I needed her to do something besides ask me to hold her. Win-win, right? Well, I don't know when is the last time you watched Sesame Street, but I think it's safe to say it's changed a bit in the 25 years since I last tuned in. Here's what I heard:

It's almost time for Abby's Flying Fairy School but first we're gonna drop it like it's hot because it's time to freestyle with... the Letter U!

Let's all shimmy, let's all shake, let's make the sound that The Letter U makes! Everybody say "uh, uh, uh..."

Is it just me, or does anyone else think that PBS puppets who talk like R&B music are a little freaky?

2010-03-30T05:06:00.000-05:00

So after spending the afternoon outdoors today and sweating, I feel like these photos are ancient but they are only about a month old!

We haven't been able to go to church much since the beginning of the year because Olivia hasn't been well enough for the nursery and is too active/distracting to take into the service. So one Sunday morning when the runny nose wasn't quite gone, we loaded her up in the wagon and took a walk around the neighborhood. When I was pregnant, we used to take the dogs to a Boy Scout park/training site in our neighborhood that has nice paths in it.

C has talked about taking Olivia's picture sitting on this tree since before she was born. He actually tried to get her up there last year before she could really sit up, which didn't work for obvious reasons.

Of course, O thought this was all great fun, especially since she was watching Rocky and Lulu run loose like madmen. They had such a good time sniffing and investigating.

And I'm including this last photo so you can all see why I'm usually the one taking the pictures -- could I be making a more ridiculous face in this photo? Digital cameras serve no purpose in our family, I guess, because I was told that this was a "great shot."

Momma's Little Helper

2010-03-29T17:38:00.002-05:00

Often when I am in the kitchen cooking, I forget to close the pantry door completely. When this happens, Olivia swoops in to help me rearrange the shelves.

I usually wind up with all contents she can reach strewn across the kitchen and living room floors. I don't mind though, because it keeps her busy while I cook at an hour of the day that tends to be a bit cranky.

How Much Is That Doggie...

2010-03-29T17:02:00.000-05:00

in the window...

Did You Say Bath??

2010-03-05T18:32:00.001-06:00

I don't think I've mentioned that since Christmas, my sister, Becca, and her son, Aden, have been living here in town with my parents. It's just temporary, unfortunately, while Philip finishes up working in Orlando and gets everything ready to move their family to the next location. To say that I have enjoyed having them here in an understatement.

One night I had made a huge pot of gumbo and invited my folks and sister to come over for dinner. Honey had a great time feeding the kids.

Since I go to my parent's house normally on Tuesday nights with Olivia while C works late, it's not unusual for us to stay through dinner and maybe even bath time. If you say the word "bath" around Aden, though, you had better be prepared to deliver.

These two made a beeline for the tub after we finished eating and (as you can see) thoroughly enjoyed splish splashing in the bath.

Then it was time to dry off and put on lotion and diapers and jammies. The only way to keep Olivia still long enough to get this diaper on her was to have Aden sit there and talk to her.

Time for bed!

Redheaded Step Fur-Child

2010-03-05T11:14:00.001-06:00

As you all know, it's been a cold winter here in the Deep South. Way colder than what we are used to -- I mean, here it is March and we're still wearing long sleeves! It's probably El Nino or global warming.

Anyway, with all the cold weather, the pups have been back indoors a time or two this winter. They have the basement, which is climate controlled, but then Rocky starts making sweet eyes at me and shivering at the back door, and I cry from all the guilt and let them sleep inside. Then of course I cuss all the dog hair everywhere, get fed up and send them out again.

Rocky and Lulu have never really known what to make of Olivia. Lulu has always wanted to love on her, but when she was brand new, Rocky sniffed her and when she cried and didn't scratch his rear end, he decided she was useless and never paid attention to her again. So when he came indoors for several days in January, he was a little nervous about Olivia.

Can you see that his ears are pinned back? She kept scooting over there to see what Rocky was doing (eating his breakfast) and trying to pull off his collar while he ate. So I called her to distract her, and this was Rocky peeking around the corner to make sure she was gone so he could eat in peace.

Eventually he gave up. Right after this he sat at my feet with his ears pinned back and made the most pitiful face. I could practically hear him asking me why I don't love him anymore.

New Year 2010

2010-03-05T01:23:00.002-06:00

We sat down to a nice big breakfast on New Year's Day, which is something we try to do most weekends when Daddy is home. O was really having a good time with her breakfast of biscuits and jelly, so Daddy got out the camera. She's been drinking out of a straw since she was about 7 months old, so we've never really done sippy cups.

There is a video that goes with this post, but I keep getting an error message when I try to upload it, so I'll have to try again later.

Help! I've Fallen, and I Can't Get UP!

2010-03-04T13:11:00.002-06:00

I may have hinted in previous posts that, sometime in December, Olivia developed an independent streak and thinks she is a Big Girl now. Which is good, of course, because it makes her want to develop new skills like walking and whatnot. The downside is that she sometimes bites off more than she can chew, so to speak, and tends to need frequent rescuing. (Yes, I know, I can't imagine where she gets this stuff from.)

Anyway, here is Olivia playing with her new activity table in the living room. She happily bangs on it by herself and I can sometimes slip into the laundry room or kitchen and get something done while she is playing. I am usually called back by a frantic cry, however, and here is what happens:

Until she recently moved up to 12 month outfits, the footie pajamas (and shoes, for that matter) were all slick-bottomed and eventually Olivia's feet would come out from underneath her. And since she doesn't like being on her belly, she would just hang on for dear life until the Rescue Squad stood her up again.

More Christmas

2010-03-04T12:59:00.002-06:00

So I swear to you that I already uploaded these photos to the blog once before. I suppose I was distracted before I published them, however, and they never saw the light of day. Until now.

As you can see, Gran and Pappa gave Olivia a red wagon for Christmas...it's awesome. I don't know if any of you have seen one since the last time you actually rode in one yourself, but they have seatbelts and cupholders now. Seriously, cupholders. Anyway, with the winter being one of the coldest around these parts in about 20 years, we have only been able to use it a handful of times so far, but O absolutely loves it.

Picture with Santa

2010-02-23T13:06:00.000-06:00

Mom and I took Olivia to have her picture taken with The North Pole's most famous Elf in December. He was an excellent Santa, the best I had ever seen, and Olivia thoroughly enjoyed herself.

Santa did give us tips for next year's photo in order to make sure it goes as smoothly as this one did, and so I will share his jolly wisdom with all of you:

1. Even if your child is super excited to see Santa, never let him/her walk up to Santa. Always carry your child and place him/her in Santa's lap. Santa can seem rather large and scary upon approach when you are only three feet tall, and once your child becomes frightened, it can be really difficult to undo.

2. Pull out last year's Santa photo early and show it to your child. Talk to them about how much fun the last trip was and let them see themselves sitting in Santa's lap. This gets them used to the idea before the Big Day.

3. Never force your child to sit in Santa's lap. Not only will the photo capture a moment you will likely want to forget, but it will also create lingering problems for future years.

Olivia's First Christmas

2010-02-23T12:15:00.003-06:00

Since everyone is familiar with what happens at Christmas, I'm not going to narrate these photos. There were presents, lots of shiny paper, a few moments of struggling for the same toys with her much stronger and more agile cousin, and in general plenty of smiles.

And since it's February, I can tell you that two months later, all of these toys are still bringing lots of noise, headaches and happiness to our household. (Kind of like Olivia, no?)

Little Miss Independent

2010-02-14T12:48:00.008-06:00

This picture and video may be six weeks old, but boy are we ever still dealing with this in the worst way. Here, when Little Miss Independent started wanting to do it all herself, it was really cute and she was still (mostly) agreeable. See how happy she is to sweetly stick the fruit in her mouth without swiping the tray clean with her hands or smearing it in her hair or throwing it at her mother?

Let me assure you, Cute ended weeks ago, and meal times have become the worst part of our day (Nap Time has become a Close Second, but that is a whole 'nother post). Not only does wanting to feed herself really limit the things she can eat, but she's also pretty much decided that she's tired of eating the things she can feed herself. She wants food that requires eating utensils but wants to do it herself.... and since the maid I keep dreaming about has yet to materialize, I'm not quite ready to yield my floors, walls or sanity to her demands.

*SIGH* The day is coming, however.

Y'all pray for me (and Mom, stop laughing).

Olivia VS. Alice

2010-02-07T07:01:00.001-06:00

One of the benefits of Olivia's new-found mobility is her ability to explore the house. She scoots from room to room and investigates all of the mundane things that we don't look twice at. Case in point is Alice, our roomba vacuum cleaner. She's actually been out of commission for a while (her rotator brush is broken, so she doesn't pick up dirt, but she still runs) and just sits patiently in a corner waiting for us to fix her. I haven't really thought much about Alice until recently. I think the exact moment was when I heard her start-up music and then the sound of her motor was drowned out by panicked crying. See for yourself:

Bathroom Update

2010-02-05T17:38:00.001-06:00

Remember how we were going to remodel our bathroom over a long weekend? Yeah.

So C took off two days of work in December, a Thursday and Friday, so that we could try to knock out the bulk of the remodeling and get our bathroom back by Christmas. It was a good plan, except for the part where Olivia got double earaches on Wednesday afternoon. It was like having a colicky newborn -- we didn't sleep more than a couple of hours at a time the whole weekend. Even with ear numbing drops, which were a lifesaver, Olivia was still miserable. Anyway, the point of all of that is that we didn't get a whole lot of bathroom work done those four days.

Chad did get all of the plumbing lines replaced with new... uh, pipes? I'm honestly not sure what he did, something about the homeowner's insurance preferring a different material I think. Anyhow, after a couple of weeks of no discernible change, we were ready to make visible progress.

Next up was installing the new not-so-heavy-that-it-feels-nailed-to-the-floor bathtub and putting up sheet rock and cement board. Pretty, huh?

We put in shelves in the side and back of the tub, then started hanging the stuff on the walls. The bathroom is small enough that it become very difficult for more than one person to work in there at once...which is to say that all of my "we" talk means that my duties are more supervisory in nature.
I know all of you just laughed at that, but I had to remind C on all three walls of the shower to include the decorative tile band, which he forgot until he had gotten past it.

The red stuff is the waterproof backing for the shower surround. It goes on like a paint and dries as a thick solid coating. We got a few splotches in the tub, but it peeled off once it was dry.

Next up is tile!

Scooting Ovation

2010-02-03T16:20:00.004-06:00

C and I were watching Olivia the other day and I looked at him and said, "If someone has told me before we became parents that I would get so excited over simple things like this, I would have laughed." Because clapping is something we all do all the time, without giving it a second thought, you know? But it was pretty exciting to see Olivia do it all by herself without any prompting from anyone -- in fact, I was surprised to see her do it because we had never even tried to teach it to her. She picked it up from us all by herself.

Video: December 5th

Thanksgiving Weekend, or The Longest Post Ever

2010-02-03T16:20:00.000-06:00

Since C had the day after Thanksgiving off of work, we took the opportunity to spend several days at his parents' home. What with the dysfunctional bathroom and all, they haven't been able to come to our house and spend the night since this summer. So we loaded down the SUV and headed for the lake to do lots of eating and watching Olivia.

There was a time when we would have all sat at the counter or on the sofa and talked to each other or even watched TV. Now we all sit on the floor and watch the baby. She looks innocent and harmless enough, but don't let that fool you.

Olivia can get into pretty much anything that she shouldn't in less time than it takes to grab a camera. Here she is, ready to help get out the dishes while Gran cooks breakfast.

Look how happy she is to "help!"

Whew! Look how tired Liv is after all that work in the kitchen. Her break didn't last long, though. Lord have mercy, that little girl didn't stop for four days straight, and she didn't get back onto a regular schedule until Christmas (which messed it up again).

I think everyone who reads this blog has spent good money purchasing toys for our child. Try not to think about that money or feel too badly while you look at her favorite toys: kitchen cooking utensils. It could be worse, though. At least you don't have plastic rings, colored balls and battery-eating music makers littering the floor of your entire house and often ignored in favor of the dish towel drawer.

Olivia got to hang out with Uncle B-rad while we were there. I think she's big enough now that he doesn't get nervous about holding her or playing with her. And she's old enough now that she's not nervous about him either, which is why you can see her in the picture asking, "Uncle Brad, when is the last time you got a haircut?"

I wish I had thought to get video of Olivia rocking herself in this chair. She was pretty pumped to swing those little legs and get things moving. Which is why Uncle Brad is holding her hands, because she tended to just swing right out of there.

Can anyone see her shirt in these photos? It's the most adorable turkey that has lovely feathers made out of pink and turquoise fabrics, and her name is embroidered on it (although you can't see that part). Lynsey made it for her, and she's got a Christmas one, too.

Speaking of Lynsey, this is Olivia visiting with her daughter, Ollie. Olivia is two months older than Ollie, although Ollie seems to have Olivia licked when it comes to mobility. They didn't really know what to make of each other, but I know they'll have lots of fun playing together as they get older!

It turns out that the humans weren't the only ones who sat around watching the baby while we were there. Aubie and Olivia enjoyed staring at each other. Well, at least Olivia seemed to enjoy it. I'm not sure that Aubie was having nice thoughts. I was surprised to see him at the back door (or front door, according to my in-laws) because he usually hears us show up and disappears.

We also made a trip to see Olivia's great-grandmothers. Here she is visiting with Grandmother, and saying hello to Grannie below.

Last but certainly not least, we headed to Montgomery for an evening to visit Aunt E and Uncle T. It was way too short, but it was great to see their new apartment and whatnot. Also great to see was Olivia's very first attempt at pulling herself into a standing position. We were all sitting on the sofa talking, and when Aunt E looked down, there was Olivia pulling on the coffee table!

Hello World

2010-02-02T21:30:00.003-06:00

Well, all three of my readers have been wondering what happened to me, so I guess it's time to jump back into the blogging world. To be fair, I got busy in the last two months. Right after my last posting, Olivia developed infections in both of her ears, which let me tell you, was F.U.N.

Then, there was the Christmas shopping and more work on the bathroom that has become the bane of my existence. Before I knew it, 2009 was gone and January took us by storm. There was a visit with some of my cousins as they passed through town (from ATL to NO to see the Saints play) and I turned 30. We had a visit from Kimmie, and I started a new Bible study. Oh, and C was baptized! See, like I said, lots of stuff has been going on. Anyway, now that Olivia is doing some exciting things, I figure I'd better get back in the saddle and start posting again.

So... the next few posts will be from the last couple of months, starting with Thanksgiving at my in-laws.

Olivia's First Party Invitation

2009-12-09T07:37:00.000-06:00

So I realize that Olivia will never remember attending a birthday party at the ripe old age of 8 ½ months, but don’t judge me for spending my Saturday at a one-year old’s birthday party unless you have children of your own. That’s all I’m saying.

Olivia’s BFF, Halle, turned one this November and her party was the weekend before Thanksgiving. There were grand plans for a hay ride, but the weather didn’t cooperate so the babies all played inside with toys and each other.

There was a lot of crawling, plenty of walking, some crying, a bit of screaming and lots of laughing. And the kids had a good time, too.

Olivia was the youngest child there, and she made plenty of friends and got passed around quite a bit. Here she’s pictured with Halle’s great-grandmother, who was the oldest person in attendance. I think they make quite the pair, don’t you?

The highlight of the party for Olivia was the juice box. I knew that Olivia could use a straw, but up until this particular day I’d only given her water to drink. We were off of our feeding schedule because of the party, so I thought I’d give Olivia a little apple juice to tide her over until we could get home. She sucked down all 6 ounces in about a minute.

Y’all, I think she liked it.

And finally, here’s a shot of Olivia and the birthday girl. The invitation said to come dressed for barnyard outdoor fun – isn’t she a doll in those overalls?

The Second 9 Months

2009-12-08T15:25:00.002-06:00

Dear Olivia,

Today you are 9 months old. Nine whole months! I cannot believe how quickly it has gone by. It just doesn't seem possible-- we just brought you home from the hospital! It seems as though it was just yesterday that I was hoping and praying that you would hurry up and come already. And now look at you: sleeping sweetly in your crib, sucking your thumb after a full afternoon of scooting, laughing, waving, clapping and exploring. Your favorite toys these days are simple ones: you love to play with the clothes basket and Minnie Mouse. You have started to try to pull yourself up on anything that will stay still long enough for you to grab it. I think that you will be walking before we know it.

You have so much to say, already. You are constantly babbling and cooing as you play, and I can't wait to find out what you are saying when you learn words. I love your wet, sloppy open-mouthed kisses and the way you squeal with delight and hide your face when you are excited. Even though you only say it when you are upset and crying, there is nothing sweeter in this world than you hear you say "Ma-ma-ma-ma."

The first 9 months while you were still growing inside me, I felt desperate to know you. What you would look like, what your name would be, what kind of temperament you would have. You were a little stranger for those first 9 months, and I would often try to imagine what you and our lives would be like when you finally arrived. These second 9 months have been like nothing I could have ever imagined, my dear sweet Child. You have turned our world upside down these last 9 months, but Daddy and I wouldn't have it any other way. And the child I am watching grow right before my very eyes...wow. You are such a beautiful soul, and an absolute joy to everyone you meet. Yesterday you and I were running errands and stopped for lunch at Chick-fil-A. While I fed you the chicken and vegetables we had just bought from Target, you watched out the window as cars drove away from the pickup window and you waved to every single one. You make friends wherever you go, and I hope that you stay that way forever.

You have richly blessed our lives these second 9 months, and Daddy and I love you with all our hearts.

Hugs and kisses,

Momma

Quality Daddy Time

2009-12-07T07:30:00.002-06:00

It seems most days that by the time Daddy comes walking in the door from work, Olivia and I are both ready and glad to see someone else. Don't get me wrong, I love her and she adores me, but we are both excited to see C's smiling face walk in the door. He always tells me hello first, then he swoops up Olivia from wherever she is, and off they go. Putting away Daddy's keys, taking off his shoes, picking up his dishes from lunch...it doesn't matter what the task is, Olivia wants to be smack dab in the middle of it in her Daddy's arms.

Sometimes Liv has already eaten dinner, and other times she still needs to be fed. On nights where she's already been fed, her daddy gives her a bath (where they play and laugh and splash) then gets her into her jammies. After she kisses me goodnight, they disappear into her bedroom.

Usually, I'm cooking dinner and don't really give them another thought until C emerges ready to eat. But recently I started to wonder what was taking him so long to get her to sleep, so I tip toed over and snuck a peek. Here is what I saw:

Somewhere along the way, C decided to make bedtime stories a nightly thing. We've always read to her, but she rarely sits still long enough with me to make it through a board book. I grabbed the camera and snapped this shot, then took the video below. I believe that C was reading the Disney version of Goldilocks and the Three Bears from a book of nursery rhymes and fairy tales that he picked out himself when we were shopping months ago.

I've known since our second date that C would be a good father one day, but he surprises me still with how loving and patient he is with his daughter. What a sweet pair they make, my two favorite people in the world.

Thanksgiving in Orlando

2009-12-06T11:51:00.003-06:00

For our combined birthday party/Thanksgiving celebrations, we had a feast. There was ham and turkey, baked macaroni and sweet potatoes, green bean & artichoke casserole and squash casserole. Lots of delicious things to eat as we sat around the table together. We all shared with each other the things that we are thankful for this year, an annual tradition in Honey & Pappy's house. This year we've had many things to be thankful for: new additions to the group (Uncle T and Olivia), good health and jobs as well as the support and love of our family. We are all blessed.

Of course, we were also celebrating The Adenator's birthday (that's what C calls him). One year ago he was this tiny squawking babe in a bouncer at our Thanksgiving dinner table. This year, he was a walking squawking little man who wandered around our Thanksgiving dinner table.

Aden and Olivia put on their party hats, posed for the cameras, and then went back to the business of playing on the floor.

Here's the birthday boy with his mother. He was tired from a weekend of activity and wanted her to hold him for most of the morning.

Olivia had just finished eating carrots, which is why her face has an orange tint to it. She was still ready to party at this point but would spend the entire ride home out of sorts. In our house, we call that wearing your cranky pants. Oh yeah, and that's Uncle T in the background. You met him yesterday under the ghetto car.

This is the elusive Aunt E with Honey and Pappy. I have some other photos of her to come soon. And that's my dad with his party hat on. Awesome, right?

While the rest of us ate, Olivia played on the floor with Aden's soccer ball. He wasn't too thrilled to share it with her, but I don't think that she really understood what he was fussing about. She just sat there at slobbered on it, completely oblivious.

When the table was cleared and all the leftovers were put away, we had to say goodbye and hit the road. It was sad to have to leave, but we'll all be together again for 24 hours at Christmas!

Weekend Warriors

2009-12-05T10:08:00.000-06:00

Three weeks ago, in mid-November on a humid Friday morning, we set our alarm for the unholy hour of 3 a.m., gathered our toothbrushes, brewed a large pot of coffee, loaded a sleeping baby in the car and started driving. Destination: Orlando, Florida.

We were on our way to celebrate Aden's first birthday (my sister said to start using their whole names because she doesn't like keeping track of all the letters) and to also have Thanksgiving dinner together as a family. Big weekend full of lots of fun! I wanted to spend as much time with Becca as possible, thus the early departure time. The plan was to get three good hours of driving in before Olivia ever woke up and the pit stops started. The plan would have worked perfectly, because Olivia slept until 7, except that I started drinking coffee the second we pulled out of the driveway. Which means that Chad was looking for a McDonald's exactly one hour into the trip. I believe this is what the literary world calls foreshadowing, because I have never stopped so many times in one road trip in my life.

Anyway, after inspecting the majority of the bathrooms along the I-10/I-75 corridor, we got to the Turnpike, also known as The Road That Eats A Paycheck's Worth of Quarters. After feeding the beast, we finally made it, just after lunch time. C and I unpacked and we headed over to Becca's apartment, where our Weekend O' Fun commenced. I have no photos from the first day because did I mention I got up at 3 a.m? Olivia had a great time playing with all of Aden's toys and watching him walk all over the apartment. The men went together to the Honey Baked Ham store to secure our Thanksgiving meat while the ladies stayed at the apartment with the kids. After eating some delicious Chinese takeout for dinner, C and I told everyone good night and we all hit the sack by 8 p.m. Eastern.

I'd like to say that we all woke up refreshed and ready to take on the day after such a good night's sleep, but that would be a lie. The mattress was so bad on our bed that C thought we might be sleeping on a box spring. Despite our rough start, we were super excited to begin our day with some quality time with Aunt E and Uncle T, who were sharing a place with us for the weekend. Becca had to work that morning, so we all took our time getting up and dressed, then after lunch the babies played together again. We made a couple of runs to the grocery store to prepare for our Thanksgiving meal and took the babies for a walk. There is a children's playground in the center of the complex, and Aden likes to watch the big kids play there so we stopped for a few minutes. It turns out that Olivia and Aden loved the slide and both of them went down it with a little help. C and Olivia also played on a rocking horse. We took a ton of photos of all of this fun, but they are all on Honey's camera. One of these days I will remember to get some of them to post here.

No photos, total bummer, I know. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so I'll be extra wordy to compensate. You're welcome.

Just kidding. All of the photos I do have are from Saturday evening and Sunday before we drove home, so you're finished with the excessive reading.

Speaking of Saturday evening, there was a very important football game being played, and we all loaded up to head to the local Mellow Mushroom to eat and watch Auburn give Georgia a run for their money. While the game turned out to be a disappointment, dinner was not. Aden wandered around the whole restaurant making friends and exploring, and we all laughed and visited with each other while enjoying delicious specialty pizzas. C and Uncle T got their picture taken with a crazy car in the parking lot while I prayed they wouldn't get shot by the car's owner:

It's kind of hard to tell, but this car is parked with the front right tire up about 2 feet up in the air. It was sitting out in the middle of nowhere and was quite impressive.

Honey managed to scoop up both of the babies and wrangle them together long enough for a photo.

After dinner, we all headed back to the apartment where the clubhouse has a huge game room complete with large TV. Philip The Pool Shark schooled me several times through the second half of the football game. The excitement of the day finally caught up with Olivia, and this is how she spent the rest of the game:

I'll show you our Thanksgiving meal in the next post.

Pumpkins, They're Not Just for Carving

2009-12-02T09:36:00.004-06:00

I know that I have tons of other stuff to post about, and I promise that I will get to it all soon. However, this is easy to share and doesn't require uploading any photos, so I will share it first.

As you know, I make Olivia's food myself. Since pumpkins are seasonal and she really loves them, I bought and made a LOT of pumpkin puree. And since I have so much, I have made a couple of recipes using some of it, like Pumpkin Cranberry Bread. Olivia loves this bread so much that she was trying to pull the plate out of my hands this morning to eat my slice. When I made the hand signal for "all gone" and we had to tell the bread bye-bye, she started crying. It really is that good.

Pumpkin Cranberry Bread

2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 tbsp. pumpkin pie spice

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

2 eggs

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 cup pureed pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling if you're buying the canned stuff)

1 cup chopped fresh cranberries

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour bundt pan.

In a large bowl, combine flour, spice, soda and salt. Mix well and set aside.

In a small bowl, beat eggs until foamy. Beat in sugar, oil, and pumpkin. Add the wet mixture to your dry mixture. Stir until just moistened/combined. Gently fold in cranberries.

Bake for approximately 50 minutes until center is done. Cool for 10 minutes and remove from pan.

The recipe calls for a dusting with powdered sugar, but I didn't do this -- the bread is sweet enough without it. Also, if you want to make your own pumpkin puree, it's super easy:

Pumpkin Puree

You'll need one baking pumpkin (the small ones, not a carving one) and a food processor or blender.

Cut the top/stem off of your pumpkin, then slice the whole thing in half. Empty out the seeds and such. I generally use a paring knife to cut out most of it and then use a grapefruit spoon to scrape out the rest. There will be some stringy stuff left, it's fine.

Once you have two cleaned halves, put them on a baking sheet, face up or down doesn't matter, and put them in a preheated (375 degrees) oven for about an hour. When you take them out and let them cool, you'll be able to peel the rind off of your pumpkin easily with your hands.

Put the meat in a food processor and go to town. You may have to add a few tablespoons of water, depending on the pumpkin. The result should be the consistency of sour cream or slightly runnier.

The Boot(y) Scootin' Boogie

2009-11-19T09:46:00.005-06:00

Well, Olivia cares as much about crawling as she did about rolling over... which is to say not much. Have no fear, though, she is quite the scooter these days. I wish the video below showed it better, but early scooting isn't exactly what you'd call On-The-Edge-Of-Your-Seat Entertainment, not even for me. So after almost two minutes of riveting video, I shut 'er down and then (of course) Olivia really started moving.

You can see in the photo above that Olivia discovered the bookcase behind our sofa. C has been joking about shrink wrapping the whole thing until she gets old enough to understand "No" but I'm starting to wonder what we are really going to do to protect my literary collection. Other than moving the bookcase to the MIL suite, are there any suggestions?

2009-11-11T11:39:00.005-06:00

It does not seem possible that it has been a whole year since Cousin A was welcomed into this world. His mom and dad wanted him very much and, although my sister told me she would be sorry to not be pregnant anymore (a bizarre notion I cannot relate to), they were beyond excited when A made his debut at 5 lbs 10 oz.

He was SO tiny. When I spent some time with my sister two weeks after A was born, I remember thinking that I had never seen a more beautiful thing in my entire life. I was able to hold him while he slept, which he did quite a bit, and smell his sweet baby head and wonder how I would ever love my own baby as much as I was already in love with my sister's. I cried quite a bit when I left Orlando to come home last November.

It has been an absolute joy to watch this nephew of mine grow from the tiniest baby I'd ever seen into the sweet-natured one-year old he is today. He is always laughing and playing and I see so much of my sister in the joy he finds in learning and discovering and taking the world by storm.

Happy Birthday, A.

Sunday's Child

2009-11-08T07:33:00.002-06:00

Monday's child is fair of face,
Tuesday's child is full of grace,
Wednesday's child is full of woe,
Thursday's child has far to go,
Friday's child is loving and giving,
Saturday's child works hard for a living,
But the child who is born on the Sabbath Day
Is bonny and blithe and good and gay.

Holla

2009-11-07T07:06:00.001-06:00

Our phone rang the other night while I was cooking dinner, right after C had walked in the door from work. It was a friend of mine, and I got involved in our conversation for a few minutes and didn't really pay attention to what was going on in the living room. When I looked up from what I was doing, this is what C had done to Olivia:

It reminded me of a story some friends of our recently told us about their 2 year-old daughter, MT. Her uncle (don't get any ideas, B) taught her as soon as she could talk that when leaving a place or person, she should make a peace sign and say "Holla." At first I was horrified, but I have to admit that when we walked out of Old Mexico that night and a 3-foot tall toddler said "Holla!" it was the most hilariously adorable thing I'd seen until my little gangster wore this hat.

They're Like Peas and Carrots

2009-11-05T06:53:00.002-06:00

C works late on Tuesdays. It's a deal that we made here so that one night a week, he stays as late as he cares to in order to get things done that pile up during the day. The idea is that his one late night means he doesn't wind up staying as late the other nights during the week and/or doesn't have to go into the office on the weekends. So far, it works for our family.

Anyway, the point being that Olivia and I fly solo on Tuesdays. We usually wind up going to visit Honey and Pappy on Tuesday evenings and have supper with them. It gives me a little break on a long day and gives Olivia regular interaction with People Who Are Not Her Mother so that she doesn't have a meltdown when we are separated.

It normally takes about 4 nanoseconds for Pappy to swoop up Olivia when we walk in the door. Oh, he'll share her; Honey definitely gets to hold her and play and sing with her. But as soon as he can snatch her up again, Pappy is on the floor playing with Olivia or bathing her or rocking her to sleep. She loves every minute of it.

This Princess Wear Knit Slippers

2009-11-03T07:03:00.001-06:00

If I had a nickel for every time someone touched Olivia's feet and then cried out, "Oh, your feet are so cold! You poor darling! Your momma needs to put something on your feet to keep them from getting so cold!" well, I'd have a lot of nickels.

So I wanted to show everyone Olivia's adorable little handmade shoes now that she is big enough to wear them, but I didn't want to take a full body shot because you'd never see them. I kept forgetting to take the photo when C was home to help me and she wasn't already changed into her pajamas, so one morning after we got dressed I decided to try to take the picture myself. Olivia sits and plays by herself, and she loves to bounce, but she doesn't crawl yet or really stand all that much. So I had to hold her up and put the camera down in front of her face to snap a photo of her feet. She got so excited to look into the viewfinder on the camera that she kept kicking and squealing and drooling all over the place. It took four tries to get this picture, but it was important to show the world that I am, indeed, covering my child's feet to keep them warm.

Baby Love, My Baby Love

2009-11-01T07:30:00.002-06:00

She starts watching the back door for her Daddy around four o'clock every afternoon. I wish I could capture the look of utter delight and devotion on her face when he walks in the door.

The feeling is mutual.

Saying Goodbye to Buster

2009-10-31T06:28:00.001-05:00

I don't think I mentioned it here, but for almost the entire month of October, we were a three dog household. Now for any of you reading this who think, as I used to, that the second and all subsequent dogs make life easier because they will play with and entertain the original dog... you would be wrong. The math is simple, people. More dogs equals more mammals who need food and attention which equals more work. So when a beautiful brown lab showed up at our backdoor the last Monday in September hungry and lonely, I was felt sorry for him and after trying unsuccessfully to run him off decided to feed him for a couple of days while we searched for his owner. Because he would be leaving again. Posters went up all over the neighborhood and we waited patiently for someone to claim him, and while we got a few calls, none of them were Dog #3's family.

In the meantime, I couldn't just call him Dog #3, so I christened him Buster. C became a little skeptical about Buster's temporary status once he got a name, but I've got enough work to do with a baby and had no intention of keeping Buster. Especially not after that sweet, energetic animal dug craters in our backyard and went through a two month supply of Lulu's food in 3 weeks. No siree.

My grandmother came from Louisiana to visit my mom for a few days and while she was in town, she came over for dinner one night.

While she was here, she got to meet Buster, which was fortuitous because she had been looking to get "a big dog" and decided that he was sweet and beautiful. I told her to take him, and she said that if I had him neutered, she would. Well folks, that was on a Wednesday and the following Thursday Buster said goodbye to his manhood.

I let my grandmother know when he was ready for his new home, and she drove over last weekend with my cousin Jeffrey to pick him up. It was so wonderful to spend a few hours visiting -- Jeffrey had only seen Olivia once before when she was brand new, and I loved watching him play with her.

They were able to spend several hours with us, and then it was time to load Buster up in the back of the van and head home. We weren't sure how Buster would do on the trip or even when he made it there, but other than a bit of excitement over his new girlfriends, Maw Maw says that he's doing wonderfully. He even adjusted to a name-change and is happily answering to Buddy now.

Our time together was short and semi-sweet. So thanks for the memories and for aerating our backyard, Buddy. See you at Christmas.

Pooped Out

2009-10-30T22:17:00.002-05:00

What you see here is our daughter falling asleep at the dinner table on a Friday night. She only had an hour nap that morning and refused to go down for one during the afternoon. So when we put her in her highchair and sat down to eat, it took approximately 5.5 minutes for her to put her head down and conk out.

Don't worry, I only left her there long enough to take this photo before she was tucked into her crib, snug as a bug.

Olivia's BFF

2009-10-30T20:04:00.002-05:00

This is Olivia's best bud, Halle. Like the movie star but with more food in her hair. Her mom is my very good friend, Em. Halle is almost 4 months older than Olivia, but as you can see they are already about the same size. Em and her husband are not tall people and well... we are. I used to joke with Em before the girls were born that one day Halle would ask how old she was when Olivia passed her up in size because she would never remember a time of being taller than Olivia. It didn't take long, I think that Olivia passed Halle up in diapers and clothes at 4 months.

What she lacks in size Halle more than makes up for with spunk. That little girl is one happy, busy, rambunctious, opinionated Mover and Shaker. Make no mistake about it, Halle is a born leader, and Olivia already watches everything she does. I look forward to watching these two grow and learn together.

Directory Assistance

2009-10-19T11:06:00.000-05:00

I don't think it is any secret that, since becoming a mother, my memory isn't what it once was. I'm among friends here, so I can admit it. Plus, it's not like I'm telling you something you don't already know. I mention this fact because I got a text message from a 937 area code number I didn't recognize a few weeks ago. It was from a guy who identified himself as Nathan (no last name) who said something to the effect that he'd gotten a new number and was trying to get back in touch with me. I couldn't think of a single Nathan that I knew except a guy in college that I wasn't really friends with, but because of the aforementioned memory issue, I figured I had better make sure. So I asked C if I knew a Nathan; he reported that to the best of his knowledge I did not. So I didn't really think any more about it until I got a phone call while I was driving the other day. Here's how the conversation went:

Me: Hello?

Strange Man on Phone (SMOP): Hey, what's up?

Me: Uh, who is this?

SMOP: You don't know?

Me: I don't think so.

SMOP: I'll give you two guesses.

Me: [At this point, I think it may be a guy I know who lives in Indiana but rarely speak to, so I say:] Andy?

SMOP: [Ignores.] I'll give you two guesses and two hints.... I don't live in the country anymooooore. [Pause.] Aaaaaaaaaaaand I'm in the Army.

Me: I have no idea who you are.

SMOP: Come on, it's Nathan!!

Me: I think you sent me a text message a while back. I don't KNOW a Nathan. Nathan who??

SMOP: [extreme exasperation] BEASLEY! Nathan BEASLEY!!

Me: [Long pause] Dude, you have the wrong number.

SMOP: [Crickets.] Oh. [Click.]

What is She Doing?

2009-10-14T21:25:00.000-05:00

But more importantly, why?

Daddy's Helper

2009-10-06T06:57:00.003-05:00

Recently we were getting some grocery shopping done and it was a rainy day. Naturally, we needed an umbrella, and we have several of the large-enough-for-a-small-army variety. Olivia is at an age where sometimes she likes to ride in the seat for kids in the cart, and other times, she would prefer to lay in the baby-carrier. This particular day was a baby-carrier day, although you can see from the way she's sitting up that she's too big to do this anymore. Anyway, we got a kick out of how helpful she wanted to be.

(C is holding the umbrella up, his hand is just out of the shot.)

Hanging with Big Maw Maw

2009-10-05T06:51:00.003-05:00

To say that Pappy's Mom, Big Maw Maw, loves babies would seem like the understatement of the year. She is notorious in recent years for her almost obsession with babies. Pinching cheeks, making faces, baby talk, she does it all. So it is safe to say that she loves Olivia and thinks the world of her. Here she is on the floor talking to Olivia in her bouncer at our house.

Doing Laundry

2009-10-04T08:41:00.002-05:00

Most days, I really wish that I had another set of hands. I know I'm not the first mother to ever say that, but boy oh boy would they come in handy. In lieu of extra hands, I've gotten creative at times:

Thankfully, Olivia doesn't seem to mind.

Eating her Veggies

2009-10-03T15:22:00.005-05:00

After Olivia started eating solid foods, C started suggesting that I look into making her food myself at home. I have to admit that my first thought was to suggest that maybe HE could make Olivia's food during HIS spare time, because I haven't had much in the way of spare time in the last seven months. He didn't really push the issue, however, and we tried the Gerber stuff.

But on a lark, I found and purchased a "Cooking for Baby" book at Target a couple of weeks ago to at least see what I would be getting myself into. It turns out that making Olivia's food isn't that hard, I can offer her a better variety than we have found in the jars at the store, and I know that it's fresh. Best of all, it is SO much cheaper. I can't believe how much less it costs to make her food instead of buying the Gerber stuff, which can be about a dollar per container.

And really, depending on what you're making, it's not hard. You just have to work on it during nap time or while someone else is around to keep an eye on the baby. I've made big batches of sweet potatoes, apples, and bananas so far, and then I freeze them in ice cube trays and store them in large ziploc bags. Then I just pull out 2 cubes to thaw when it's time to eat!

The only thing that we've fed Olivia so far that she didn't like was green peas. She adores sweet potatoes, and with everything else, after adjusting to the new taste in the first few bites, she is happy to eat whatever we feed her. But green peas? No thank you. There's gagging and coughing and spewing and flailing. Mom said that she had a hard time getting me to eat anything green as a baby, so I thought it might be a lost cause. The cookbook suggests zucchini, though, and you don't find that in baby jars, so I decided to give it a try before I wrote off green veggies.

Well, I think we have a new favorite vegetable in zucchini. She was so excited about eating it today that she was straining to reach the spoon if I didn't move quickly enough. Of course, when we pulled out the camera she was too busy watching it to really focus on her eating, but you get the idea.

More Beach Pictures

2009-10-03T15:18:00.000-05:00

Aunt B and Cousin A

I'm ready for my close up!

Naptime

Peek a boo, I see you!

Uncle P with the little monkeys

Cheesin' it up for the camera

Cuttin' up with his Daddy

Trouble.

Papa's Birthday

2009-10-03T14:41:00.000-05:00

We went to visit Papa for his birthday in August (I know, I've got a backlog of blog material. I'm working on it) and also helped Ollie's Army raise money to help cure CF (we ate hotdogs and rode with Papa while he worked on his poker hand). It was a good time!

Gran snatched Olivia up the second we arrived and they had a good time hanging out and meeting people. They also tested the waters in the lake with their toes, and Olivia wasn't too keen on the cold water. She got over that in Navarre, but we were a bit worried after this first aquatic encounter.

C and I took the opportunity to go for a nice walk Sunday morning sans baby. We enjoyed the fresh air and adult conversation (well, I did anyway. I listen to a lot of babble during my days) while Olivia spent some quality time with Gran and Papa. Gran got Olivia a cool activity mat to play on at their house, and she had a lot of fun investigating her new toy.

And, for his birthday, Papa got a webcam from Olivia so they can Skype! We've tested it out once to make sure it works properly, but I think that this weekend might be a good time to break it in and have a nice chat!

C and I also brought Olivia to visit one of her great-grandmothers while we were in the area. Grannie enjoyed the visit and Olivia had a great time playing in Grannie's lap while we all talked. Cousin Chase was also at Grannie's so Olivia got to meet him for the first time, too.

At the Beach, at the Beach...

2009-09-25T18:28:00.003-05:00

No, not THAT beach!

Olivia and I just recently took our first trip to the beach. Navarre Beach.Well, that's not exactly true, but that last time she was there, I didn't even know that she existed yet. Anyway, we went to Navarre Beach and had a blast!

Chad came with us for both weekends but went back home to work during the week (a couple of days in the sand and sun is enough for him) and while he was away, we enjoyed a lot of other visitors.

Olivia's cousin A, Aunt B and Uncle P got to spend some precious time with us. We don't get to see them often because of how far away they live, so we were super-excited to have several days to just play and be together.

I think it is safe to say that Olivia is completely over-the-moon for her little cousin who is 4 months older than she is. When she wasn't trying to do exactly what he did or play with the same exact toy, Olivia was usually gazing in his direction with all the love a 6-month baby can muster.

That's right, Thing 1 and Thing 2.

You would not believe how hard it was to get two babies, one of whom is not even mobile yet, to be still and look in the same direction for a photo.

Olivia also got to hang out with both sets of her grandparents at the beach. Gran and Papa came down the first weekend we were there, and we all enjoyed beautiful weather.

Sadly, this is the only photographic evidence that I have that Gran and Papa were at the beach. I didn't really get into the picture-taking groove for a couple of days. I'm betting that Gran and Papa aren't too upset that I don't have them plastered on the internet in their swimsuits, though.

Honey and Pappy came at the end of the week. It was Honey's birthday while she was there, so we made a cake and sang to her as well. We also made handprints and footprints to give her for her Christmas tree, but I used the wrong homemade play dough recipe and they melted in the oven. Whoops. (We're working on a re-do.)

Honestly, the pool at the condo was a much bigger hit with the babies than the beach was. It turns out that sand isn't all that fun when you put everything that you touch in your mouth. Olivia also found the waves (which were fairly big the entire week) a bit frightening.

Maybe I'm partial, but is this not the cutest baby you've ever seen?

We had these floats for the babies to play in the pool. Gran found one for Olivia, and Aunt B already happened to have the same thing for A. They both loved floating in the nice, calm and clear water of the pool and splashing around with their toys. (Olivia wore a hat all week so we didn't have to rub sunscreen in her hair.)

Feathering Our Nest

2009-09-07T14:28:00.022-05:00

When C bought our home in 2005, he definitely made the purchase with an eye towards potential. I mean, it wasn't going to fall in on itself or anything, but the original homeowners definitely turned a blind eye towards good taste and practicality. Not to mention that the folks who owned it before us rented the place out to Norma Ray and Billy Bob, so our little Love Nest came with more than its fair share of dings and dents.

When I met my Beloved, he was in the throes of renovating the master bathroom. (Go ahead and look up throes, I know you want to. I used it correctly. It means "epic struggle.") Now, if you have ever been to our home, you have surely gotten a tour of said bathroom because we are very proud of the hard work that went into making it a beautiful and much more functional place to shower and brush your teeth. Much of the work, in fact most of the work, in there was completed by C alone; I, however, will take credit for being the motivation for completion (He had been working on said bathroom project for 2+ years when we started dating. I told him I wouldn't marry him until the bathroom was usable. I was only partially kidding.)

Anyhow, we've done many things to feather our nest since marrying last year. Well, since I was pregnant for 97% of that time, I wasn't a whole lot of help -- unless you count making Honey-Do Lists. But again I was the motivation for completion. Or, in this case, I was growing it inside of me. We painted every wall in the house, remodeled the laundry room, set up the nursery, cleaned out the daylight basement, updated the fireplace and very recently have been working on our backyard. We've had a drainage problem that has washed out most of our good dirt and all of what little grass was there was long ago killed by the dogs...so while the weather was halfway decent, C started building a retaining wall with the help of my dad.

In the meantime, because apparently one project at a time isn't good enough for us, we decided to tackle Olivia's bathroom. It's small, which we can't change, but also had horrible wallpaper and a really beat up little vanity and cabinet. I wanted to paint and patch some holes, and C has always thought that it smelled funny (dirty) in there and wanted to scrub everything down and redo the floor tile.

My handsome Better Half, oblivious to what the remodeling future holds, smiling as we tear down wallpaper.

We figured it would be a three weekend project, with Labor Day giving us a long weekend to work to finish up. So about a month ago we rented the steamer to remove the wallpaper and knocked that out one Friday night after Olivia went to sleep.

Now the fun begins as we remove all of the junky bathroom fixtures.

Next, we started removing all of the fixtures so we could take up the tile from the floor. This is when we first realized we were in trouble. Big Trouble.

(L) The sheetrock was so nasty behind the shower surround that you could push your hand straight through it.
(R) Trouble is a-brewing. This is the hole in the subfloor that was directly under our toilet.

It turns out that Norma Ray or Little Billy Bob or Frank Lloyd Wright had a leaky faucet somewhere along the line. And a leaking toilet. And a leaking shower. As we peeled back the layers, we could see that the leaks had been (mostly) found and fixed, and the damages had been patched up but not really corrected all along the way. And that smell C couldn't source? It was all of the rotten wood and sheetrock. So to recap, Everything in the bathroom had at one point contributed to massive water damage, and the floor, subflooring, floor joists (!), sheetrock, insulation, and all plumbing fixtures needed to be replaced. As I have said to one of my house guests recently, it's amazing that one of you didn't wind up falling through the floor when you used our commode.

Rotten wood and smelly filth are all that's left of the bathroom at this point.
Can you believe someone just covered this up and hung wallpaper?

As the work to remove all things rotten began, C and his father-in-law (who has been a gigantic help with all of this, thank you!) found that the damage to the floor and whatnot extended under the adjoining wall into Olivia's nursery.

Here's more of the water damage and subsequent hole in the floor in Olivia's room.

So they have been working to fix her room first so she isn't displaced. When Mom asked for a progress report earlier today, all I could say was "they've ripped out even more stuff, there's a bigger whole than the last time I talked to you, and they haven't started to fix anything yet."

I just had to include this photo of the bath tub in our front yard. It's cast iron, so when Dad and C first tried to pick it up yesterday, they thought it was nailed to the floor because it was so heavy that it didn't budge!

To be fair, progress had been made. They've worked hard and accomplished a lot in very little time. It's just a far cry from where I expected to be this weekend, putting the finishing touches on a new paint job and beaming with pride at our fresh smelling guest bathroom.

We'll get there. Eventually.

It's 8:10 am...

2009-09-01T08:19:00.006-05:00

And I've nursed Olivia, she played and I pumped, she ate cereal and so did I, we cleaned up her and the kitchen, changed her into daytime clothes, and now she's taking a nap.

One year ago, I was just rolling into the office and starting my day. The most pressing item on my agenda was finding coffee.
Oh, what a difference a year makes!

Blogging Comments

2009-08-21T18:25:00.002-05:00

I received few complaints that it was difficult to comment on our blog posts, and I couldn't understand why. I comment on some of my favorite blogs all the time without any problem. So my Better Half asked me to sit down and show him what he was missing, and lo and behold, unless you have a blog (and thus an OpenID) our blog was not comment-friendly.

That, my friends, has changed. I fiddled with the settings, and although I'm not even sure how I did it, you can now easily and conveniently leave a comment using your name -- the URL part is now optional. So now you don't have to be anonymous!

And just in case you're wondering why I would bother to make a blog entry about this, it's because I really enjoy the comments. It's not exactly easy to find the time to do this with a baby in the house, so I like to know that someone is actually reading and appreciating it!

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall...

2009-08-21T07:32:00.002-05:00

As I have mentioned recently, Olivia is all about sitting up. She loves to practice holding herself up and often gets so excited when she does that she throws herself back in delight.

Here she has discovered the mirror that hangs on the inside of her crib. I set her down in there to practice sitting up because it is a relatively soft landing spot for her, and she could not get over how cute that baby in the mirror was!

If you press the little green circle in the bottom right hand corner of the mirror (and this photo) a little voice sings out "Peek-a-boo, I see you!" and Olivia would grin and laugh every time she said it.

Mmm Mmm Good!

2009-08-20T10:41:00.005-05:00

Today, Olivia had her very first Meal-with-a-Spoon. She has been eyeing up everything that C and I eat and drink for weeks now, so we knew it wouldn't be long before it was time to graduate to solid foods. She cut her first two teeth last week, and I guess she decided that she was ready to put those chicklets to work! Less than two hours after nursing this morning Olivia was hungry again, so we mixed up some rice cereal and got ready.

We tried this a couple of weeks ago when Olivia first started cutting teeth and we didn't know that was what was making her so cranky -- we thought she was hungry. At the time, she spit everything out and just chewed on the spoon. So I gave her her own spoon to play with while I fed her this morning, and she has really great hand control! She had no problem getting it in her mouth several times. I didn't make it as runny as the box says to, and she really seemed to enjoy it once she figured out she was supposed to swallow it.

Old Friends ARE Gold!

2009-08-14T07:15:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago one of my oldest and dearest friends vacationed at the beach with her husband, and they stopped to spend a night with us before hitting the Gulf Coast.

It is always really great to see old friends, and Olivia loved having house guests to show off for.

Dancing with Daddy

2009-08-13T08:00:00.002-05:00

Dancing and singing are a regular part of the routine in the Hall House!

Bouncing It Up

2009-08-12T13:30:00.000-05:00

Check it out! Along with her desire to sit up all the time, Olivia (who is now 5 months old) is a huge fan of standing. I set up this bouncer for her to play in, and she loves it. There's a piano and rings and a mirror and other fun activities for her to play with. She gets so excited exploring all the toy stations and squeals with delight! It's hard to catch on video because she is in love with the camera and just sits and stares at it the second you pull it out, but I'll have to try to film her when she isn't paying attention to me and post it.

A Visit from Aunt Peg and Victoria!

2009-08-12T07:30:00.001-05:00

Victoria picked out a bunch of great board books and brought them for Olivia when she came to visit recently. Olivia loved to listen to Victoria read and learn about letters, shapes and numbers!

While Aunt Peggy and Victoria were in town, Olivia started rubbing her gums with her tongue because she has two little teeth that are thinking about coming out.

Two beautiful smiles on two beautiful girls!

Playing on the Music Mat

2009-08-11T07:34:00.002-05:00

Movin' on Up!

2009-08-10T14:47:00.002-05:00

Now this is much more to Olivia's liking -- sitting up! She is queen of the Bumbo. We have found that a Bumbo on a restaurant table is a lot easier than bringing in a carrier that has to be set up next to the table. She seems to like to be in the middle of the action, too.

The only trouble with this arrangement is that Olivia is becoming VERY interested in what Momma and Daddy are eating and drinking (case in point, you may have noticed the drool in the first picture). It won't be much longer before her curiosity will put an end to our easy dining routine.

Rolling Over

2009-08-10T14:39:00.002-05:00

I've come to realize that Olivia just does not like to be on her belly. The doctor has always said that she needs to spend a lot of time on her tummy to strengthen her neck and back muscles, but every time I would lay her down she would scream bloody murder until I picked her up or rolled her over. We thought she would eventually come to like it or at least get used to it, but not so much.

At four months I started putting Olivia to bed on her stomach, and that seemed to help her adjust to being on her tummy when she is awake. She has rolled over on her own exactly three times now, and she just isn't interested in doing it more than that. She will play on her tummy now, but she's not flipping over unless it is an emergency.

Nekkid Baby

2009-08-08T08:00:00.000-05:00

I haven't updated the blog in a while, so some of these posts will be a few weeks old, but I had to share this photo. Chad and I went out to eat after church one Sunday, and while we were there, Olivia had an "incident" requiring that we remove what she was wearing. I had a spare outfit in her diaper bag, but she wasn't exactly ready for clean clothes. So we did what we could... we put her in a clean diaper and put her in the car seat. It was less than a 10 minute drive to get home, but she was so tired from the ordeal that she konked out on the way to the house. So here she is, sleeping like a good redneck baby in her diaper in the backseat!

My First Wedding

2009-08-07T16:32:00.002-05:00

Aunt Erica and Uncle Tim got married in June, and it was Olivia's first wedding. Dad was in charge of her the entire time since Mom was in the wedding, and he did a fantastic job. Of course, Olivia wasn't much trouble -- this is how she spent almost the entire time.

Naptime

2009-06-05T07:45:00.000-05:00

Olivia occasionally has bouts with gas, in all likelihood because of something that Mommy ate. Because the episodes are pretty irregular, it's hard to say what the cause is -- but we definitely know the cure!

Getting tummy-to-tummy helps relieve Olivia's discomfort. She is usually so exhausted from crying when this happens that a nap is in order.

You Gotta Accessorize

2009-06-02T14:37:00.007-05:00

Recently we went shopping at Mommy's favorite children's clothing store to get Olivia something to wear to Aunt E and Uncle T's upcoming wedding. While we were there, we also bought this nifty headband designed to hold hair-bows on the follicle-challenged.

Isn't she purty? I think she knows it.

A Visit From Kimmie

2009-06-02T14:27:00.003-05:00

Kimmie was passing through town not long ago, so Olivia and I met her in Mobile for breakfast. We took 3 photos, and this appeared (on the tiny display) to be the best one, so I didn't take any more. Olivia was happy the entire time, so I have no idea why that bottom lip is poking out. I think that sometimes she gets her expressions confused.

Tummy Time

2009-05-18T07:55:00.002-05:00

Olivia and I went to the pediatrician recently for her two-month check up. Dr. Moore encouraged me to expand the amount of "Tummy Time" that Olivia is getting to continue to build her neck muscles. She emphasized that until she gets used to it, Olivia will really dislike these exercises. She had been laying flat on a blanket on the kitchen table and really enjoyed that time, so I found it hard to believe she would despise the Boppy. Let me just say that this particular exercise is an acquired taste that Olivia has not yet embraced.

Dr. Moore said that giving her something interesting to look at and reach for would help, so we started with this cow because of its coloring (newborns can most easily see the contrast of black, white, and red).

Olivia was not impressed.

Rub A Dub

2009-05-17T09:43:00.002-05:00

Here's Dad and Olivia, scrubbing around her neck. A lot of milk gets in there during the course of the day and collects all manner of lint if you're not careful.

Olivia really likes bath time. The only time she gets upset is when it is over. (Look at that belly!)

After the bath comes drying off and getting dressed for bed.

So fresh and so clean!

Say What?

2009-05-15T07:40:00.002-05:00

Olivia has really found her voice in the last week. We take some time to play and talk several times each day so that she can practice building muscles and using her voice. She is already very good at vocalizing -- often it is filled with laughter and cooing, which is a lot sweeter than the talking in this video, but that wasn't the kind of mood Olivia was in this afternoon. You can see at the end of this video what Olivia was trying to tell me (time to eat, Mommy!)

No More Newborn

2009-05-14T07:50:00.001-05:00

Olivia is a big girl!

Olivia has been growing like a weed! She's 9 weeks old this week, and she's graduated to her 3 Month clothes -- no more newborn outfits for her! Isn't this jumper adorable?

Pink Means GIRL, People!

2009-05-13T08:13:00.001-05:00

Just because my hair is thin on top does not mean I am a boy! Boys do not wear pink or purple or socks that look like ballerina slippers! Boys do not wear butterflies or headbands! Stop calling me a handsome little guy -- pink means I am a girl!!

Look Ma, My Hands!

2009-05-12T12:50:00.002-05:00

Since the day she was born, Olivia has always had her hands up in her face (see Exhibit A, above). Until recently she lacked the coordination to really control where exactly her hands landed. She would keep her tiny hands balled up in fists and try desperately to get her thumb in her mouth, not realizing that she was working against herself -- the harder she tried to find her thumb, the tighter she would ball up her fists (with her thumb securely tucked away under all those other fingers).

Then one magical day, all of Olivia's hard work paid off -- her thumb accidentally landed in her mouth, and all that sucking managed to keep it there (Exhibit B).

She doesn't care that the other four fingers are poking her in the eye most of the time. Even if I give her a pacifier, she'll spit it out after a few minutes and in pops the thumb.

At this age, she's too young to try to teach about the perils of thumb sucking. So for now, we just enjoy how adorable she is, and Mommy enjoys how quiet the mornings are since Olivia sucks her thumb when she wakes up instead of crying to nurse.

Liv in Motion

2009-04-23T18:46:00.005-05:00

For those of you who haven't met her yet or don't get to see her often, I thought it would be nice to post a video of Olivia -- she's starting to make faces and talk, usually when she feels she's being ignored. Here she is watching me update the blog from her bouncer.

The Man With the Magic Touch

2009-04-23T18:05:00.002-05:00

There is more than one photo from 20-plus years ago of Pappy when he was just Daddy in this very same pose. The names have changed, but the result is the same... an excellent nap!

Look What the Postman Brought!

2009-04-23T17:52:00.004-05:00

Olivia got her first package in the mail! Look how excited she is to see what she got!

A super cool blanket came for her all the way from North Carolina, along with an adorable pair of handmade shoes (her very first pair).

Mommy and Me

2009-04-23T16:29:00.002-05:00

Look at how big she's getting!

Six Weeks, Part Deux

2009-04-23T16:16:00.003-05:00

Olivia, curled up on the sofa under her favorite yellow blanket, taking a nap between feedings.

Six Weeks Old

2009-04-23T16:12:00.001-05:00

Easter 2009

2009-04-23T15:47:00.002-05:00

Am I the only one who thinks she looks like she's smuggling something in those cheeks?

Daddy, Momma and Olivia with the Easter Bunny

Napping on Gran's lap

Snoozing with Poppa

One Month Old!

2009-04-23T15:43:00.000-05:00

Wide-eyed and soaking up every detail!

Aunt Kimmie Visits!

2009-04-23T15:27:00.002-05:00

Kimmie came in for a long weekend from Atlanta to meet Olivia. It was a much needed and appreciated visit -- we haven't seen Kim since the wedding.

Olivia got to spend quality time bonding with Kimmie when she wasn't cooking-- Kim played Domestic Goddess the whole time she was in town.

We had a great visit and made Kimmie promise not to wait 9 months before she comes back!

Hanging Out with Gran and Poppa

2009-04-23T15:16:00.002-05:00

Daddy's Sweet Spot

2009-04-23T15:00:00.002-05:00

This is Olivia's favorite spot to sleep... I think that Daddy's pretty fond of it, too!
Sometimes we had trouble early on getting Liv to snooze in the bassinet, but Chad's chest is pretty much the sweet spot -- she'll sleep there pretty much without fail, and then you can move her to her bed (if Chad will let you!)

Here's Looking at You, Kid

2009-04-23T14:46:00.002-05:00

Mommy, what a delicious nose you have!

Home From the Hospital

2009-04-23T14:35:00.004-05:00

After a very slow and careful drive home from the hospital with Mom and Dad, Olivia could hardly wait to get inside and see her new home. See how excited she is?

The bonnet Liv is wearing is the one that Honey brought Liz home from the hospital in, although Olivia didn't really seem to appreciate that fact. Those with any bonnet knowledge will note that Olivia is wearing it backwards, thanks to her parents (who had absolutely no idea what they were doing).

Hanging out in my car seat.

Here's Olivia with Pappy -- he came over for a few days to help Mommy and Daddy get settled in.

Honey fixed the bonnet! She also got Olivia the lovely gown she's wearing for the big trip home.

Liv's First Sun Shades

2009-04-23T14:09:00.005-05:00

Olivia was a little jaundiced those first few days in the hospital and had to spend time under the blue light. She could take a break to come in our room to eat but otherwise was stripped down to her diaper and spent her time "sunning" under the blue light and screaming bloody murder. To protect her eyes, Olivia had to wear purple fabric "sunglasses."

Surprisingly, Olivia didn't mind having her eyes covered. I suppose it was from being used to the dark already.

Olivia Elizabeth Hall

2009-04-23T13:47:00.007-05:00

Here she is! Olivia was born Sunday, March 8 at 9:47 am. She weighed 7 lbs. 10 oz. and was 20 3/4 inches long.

The Proud Daddy smiling for the camera while Mom and Olivia are in the recovery room.

Mom and Dad with the newest member of the Hall family!

Pregnancy Photo Essay

2009-02-24T17:05:00.006-06:00

We intended to take photos of my pregnancy every week so we could one day show our daughter her development. I was so sick in the beginning that I couldn't be bothered to pose for photos, so I was quite far into my pregnancy before we started documenting weekly growth. Here you can see what I've looked like since November:

Chad and I visited Becca and Philip at Thanksgiving to meet Aden. We went to EPCOT that Saturday when I was 24 weeks. I felt pretty big at the time. Little did I know...

Here I am minding my own business, reading the latest issue of Martha Stewart magazine at 28 weeks (which would be the weekend before Christmas).

This photo is 32 weeks, taken the same day as our professional photos. As you can see, a lot of my tops have started having trouble staying over my belly and I am constantly pulling them down.

I really like this shirt, it would seem. Here is 34 weeks. When I go to the doctor for checkups, Dr. Wells always measures my belly from top to bottom -- normal growth should be within an inch or so of the number of weeks I am. I have consistently been two inches larger than my weeks, so here I am measuring 36 inches. In other words, our child is a little on the large side.

This was taken on Valentine's Day (36 weeks). We attended a marriage retreat through our church and spent the night at the Perdido Beach Resort in Orange Beach. This is on the balcony of our room before we went down to breakfast Saturday morning.

And 37 weeks -- this photo was taken Sunday night. Since then she has dropped a bit lower. And according to the ultrasound this past Thursday, she was measuring 7 pounds 12 ounces.

Sweet Pea's Future Digs

2009-02-24T16:33:00.004-06:00

So right now our daughter spends 90% of her time exploring my ribs with her feet, but soon she'll be hanging out in her new room, which for the most part is now complete and ready for her arrival. It's hard to tell from the photos, but the walls are painted a very pale purple with the crib wall being a shade darker than the other three walls.

We found this little bookshelf at Target to hold her books and other knick-knacks.

Eventually we will probably hang a mirror over the dresser/changing table, but for now that wall will stay empty. Can you see the color difference in the two walls in this photo?

The black and white photo hanging by her crib is from our professional photo session when I was 32 weeks. (I am 37.5 weeks now) The white shelf near the ceiling goes around three of the four walls and I'm sure will wind up filled with dolls and other toys soon.

This is the nursing glider we found when the baby store went out of business a few weeks ago. It's a very light yellow damask and coordinates perfectly with all of the bedding for her crib. On the wall behind the glider is a ceramic cross that we will be able to personalize with all of her stats (name, size, time and date of birth, etc.) once she arrives.

The Point of It All

2009-02-12T17:28:00.007-06:00

I'm not really sure what I'm doing. My dear friend, LA, who lives in NC and has been blogging for almost three years, tells me that this is easy and fairly self-explanatory. I don't believe her, so I am going to practice by posting photos and pregnancy updates before our daughter arrives. Once she is here, I think this will be the best way to share with family and friends without exposing myself to every person we ever attended school with/lived near (via Facebook). Anyway, this blog isn't really going to be about LC or me, it's about her:

Isn't she beautiful? She's set to arrive March 15.