You're Not the Boss Applesauce!

Saturday we started Olivia on some food.  She has been eating rice cereal for a few weeks now but mostly just in her bottle at night.  So, I was able to snap a video of her trying applesauce for the first time.  I gave her some right after she ate a bit of oatmeal for an afternoon snack.  I'm not sure she really likes applesauce, but I guess I would make these faces too if all I'd been eating for 6 months is breast milk, formula and rice cereal!

Sweet potatoes next!!!

6 Month Appointment

Olivia had her 6 month Dr. visit this morning and all is well!  She is definitely ready to start eating some solid foods!  We started her on rice cereal a couple weeks ago and it seems to be agreeing with her so we'll start her on oatmeal for a few days and then get started on some fruits and veggies!!  We are so excited for Olivia to try something with some flavor! 

Olivia's nurse is super pleased with her progress as far as her growth but wants to see her sitting up on her own soon.  We are working on it, so I know she'll be good to go in the next few weeks.

Her stats at 6 months old:

15 pounds 15 oz - 51st percentile - up 2 pounds from her 4 month appointment but down from 57th percentile

27 1/2 inches - 96th percentile - up 2 inches from her 4 month appointment and up from 90th percentile

43 cm head circumference - 67th percentile - up 1 cm but down from 78th percentile

I took some pictures of Olivia at the Dr. office but for some reason, they are no longer on my phone, so I have none to share!

I look forward to how much Olivia will grow over the next 3 months!  9 month appointment next!

Busy Sunday!

The past Sunday was a busy one!  Not only was it Olivia's 6 month birthday, it was my mother-in-law's 65th birthday!  So, we packed up and headed to Danielle and Eric's house for a surprise breakfast for Ruth.  She was definitely surprised.  The whole family was there to celebrate.  The only person missing was Jon.  He had to work so wasn't able to come up with Michelle, Staci and Courtney.  He was missed!  Olivia got to meet her Aunt Michelle and her cousins, Staci and Courtney.  She loved them lots!!

Olivia laughing with Miss Courtney

Olivia chillin' with Miss Staci

 After breakfast we all went outside (gorgeous by the way) and set up the camera on the tripod to get a picture of the whole family!!

Then the fun started!  We tried to get all the different family combinations since almost all of us were there!

Nana and the Grandchildren

Bob and Ruth with the kids

Bob and Ruth with the boys

Bob and Ruth with the girls

 The visit with everyone was so nice and Olivia was so great despite not having a nap!  Here are a few more shots from the day!



Andrew Chillin'



Olivia with Aunt Dani



Cole Bug!

After our visit, Lee, Olivia and I headed over to Bob and Ruth's to have some one-on-one time with them and watch a bit of the Skins game.  Olivia finally got her nap in!  Long day for Olivia, but she was a trooper!

Cousins!

Saturday, Olivia and I took a field trip out to Auntie 'Reen, Uncle Andy and Adam's house to visit with them and Grandma and Grandpa.  Olivia has been using an "Exersaucer" at school and Adam was nice enough to let Olivia borrow his, so we had her take it for a spin!  This is what happens when a 1 year old plays with a 6 month old.....

After we hung out at the house for a bit and watched the Hokies beat the Blue Devils, Mom, Maureen and I headed out to Kohl's for a little BSS (Birthday Shopping Spree) for me!  Olivia stayed at the house with Grandpa and Uncle Andy.  Grandma even bought Olivia her first Christmas dress!  Oh boy, it's absolutely gorgeous and I can't wait to put her in it!

Trip to the Pumpkin Patch!

Sunday morning, we packed up and headed to Ticonderoga Farms to take pictures of Olivia and her BFF, Vivien.  Sarah called earlier in the week to see if we could get in without paying since the girls obviously wouldn't be partaking in pony rides, hay rides or burlap sack slides!  Since we were just going for pictures and pumpkins, we didn't have to pay.  Perfect! 

Ticonderoga is a local farm that has both pumpkins and cut-your-own Christmas trees.  I see this place being visited by the Diehrs and Wyshynskis for years to come. 

We walked back to one of their many patches and gathered a bunch of pumpkins to set up a mini-studio for the girls.  Since they can't quite sit up on their own, we had to prop them up with some pumpkins.  This is what we got!  We caught some smiles from Vivien, but I think she might have been a little tired.  Olivia was hamming it up, as usual!

After a while, the girls were a little over having their pictures taken, so we picked them up and headed back to the main area of the farm and had fun taking random pictures.

Vivien is watching Olivia to learn how to smile!  I know she knows how!!

Vivien is definitely not enjoying this little photo session!

 We look forward to making this a tradition!  Maybe next year the girls will be easier to photograph!

Shelley and Jason's Wedding

October 1st, Shelley and Jason got married.  Shelley has been a good friend of mine since 6th grade.  From making up dances to Milli Vanilli (yes, I am being absolutely serious) to playing softball to managing the high school baseball team, Shelley and I have remained friends for a LONG time!  I was very honored to have been invited to be there to witness her special day.  This day was even more special because back in April, her father, Tom, or "The Big Foote", suffered a major heart attack.  Things were very touch and go for a while and they weren't even sure he would be there to walk her down the aisle.  Well, he fought hard and was there to make the day even more special for Shelley.  He still has a long road ahead of him, but you could tell how happy he was to be there.  I definitely get emotional at weddings, but watching Tom walk Shelley down the aisle and witnessing the Father-Daughter dance, was just amazing to watch.  Why I had no tissues with me is a mystery!  He didn't recognize me, but when I told him my name, his eyes lit up and he gave me a big hug! 



Tom walking Shelley down the aisle

As part of the ceremony, Shelley and Jason had a "Passing of the Rings".  They passed the rings around to everyone to say a little blessing or prayer to wish the new couple well.

Passing of the Rings



The Programs



 

The Bohlens!





Beautiful!

 The weather was absolutely gorgeous!  It was slightly windy, but what a beautiful night!  Perfect for a wedding. 

 The newlyweds went around the venue getting their pictures taken and we enjoyed a cocktail hour with passed hors d'oeuvres and an open bar.  I enjoyed a nice glass of Pinot Grigio and caught up with a few friends from back in the day.  After the cocktail hour, we headed upstairs to the reception area.  They had a photo album instead of a guest book.  They had a friend taking pictures of each guest as they came into the room and we wrote our names next to an empty space in the album where the picture would go.  Neat idea!

Wine charm favors!

When Shelley and Jason enjoyed their first dance together as a married couple, Tom watched and smiled. 

Dancing to Michael Buble's "Crazy Love"

Tom watching with a smile!

The night continued with dinner and dancing and everybody was having a great time.  Brad came to me and requested a picture of the three of us who have known each other since 6th grade! 

Friends for 22 years and counting.....

After the last dance, we hailed a cab and headed back to the hotel for much needed sleep.  This was our first night away from Olivia so we had no reason to wake up in the middle of the night except for the sirens that seemed to never stop! 

All in all, we had a fantastic evening and we wish the new couple a safe and wonderful trip to Aruba!!

5 Months!!

As much as it seems like forever ago when we brought Olivia home from the hospital, I can't believe it's been 5 months!  Friday was her 5 month birthday so we celebrated with a great weekend!! 

Friday I took the day off to play golf in a work event.  We played at Penderbrook (definitely wouldn't recommend this course).  I played with my good friends Dave and Tracy from the office and Stephen, another co-worker.  It was a scramble format and we used a lot of my shots!  I played ok!  We still didn't score very well, but it was a lot of fun.  Can't wait to do it again next year!  I just hope it's at a better course!  It was free, so I suppose I shouldn't be so picky.

Saturday started with Lee going to Arlington to shoot the Clarendon Day 5K/10K.  Then it was off to Andrew's baseball game.  What a hot day it turned out to be!  Olivia and I came for part of the game but it was just too hot for her to be out there.  And to be honest, it was too hot for me too :)  Here are some pictures from the game!

 After Olivia and I left the game, we made an impromptu visit to Grandma and Grandpa's house!  I think we made their afternoon.  Well, that and the Hokie win!!  We got home and spent the rest of the afternoon/evening watching some pretty amazing football games.  Then it was off to bed.

Sunday ended up being a lazy day, but a great one.  We spent the day watching football and spending quality time together.  Was fantastic!  Lee even set up the lights and did a photo shoot for Olivia's 5 months.  Here are some of my favorites!

All in all.....a fantastic weekend!!!

Peacefulness......

I tried uploading this video to blogger yesterday but to no avail!  I tried again this morning and it worked!  Yay!  When I went in to wake Olivia up yesterday (I hate having to wake her up) she just looked SO peaceful.  I had to grab the video camera to capture her cuteness.   

And.....we're rollin!

Well, she's finally done it!  She is rolling over.  The only problem is.....she HATES being on her belly!  So, she rolls over and then she freaks out.  And then she rolls over again!  This made for an interesting night last night.  She went to bed just fine and then kept rolling....and rolling.....and rolling....well, you get the picture!  We managed to catch her rolls on video this evening.  Enjoy!

Just because.....

I love taking videos of our little Olivia.  This one is just of her having floor time.

Putting my foot in my mouth.....

Look at my new trick!

Eating all by myself!

There are other posts that I need to write up about this weekend, but I wanted to post this one first!!  Today, I bought Olivia a "trainer" cup.  So, I took the handles off and put them on one of her bottles and just handed it to her!  This was the result:

New Blanket Buddy

Olivia really enjoys this pink blanket buddy Miss Belissa lets her play with at school so Grandma found this cute little froggy one and gave it to her last night. As you can tell.....she loves it!!!   We got home from our visit with Grandma and Grandpa and while I was getting her bottle ready, she snuggled and fell asleep with it!  Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!

More unusual sleeping....

At 4:00 this morning, I rolled over and decided to check the monitor to look at O while she was sleeping.  She had wiggled herself near the bottom of the crib and almost out of view.  Then I noticed she looked a little different.....I jumped up and told Lee "she is on her stomach!!!".  She had rolled over at some point and was face down in her crib.  We both ran in there to make sure she was ok, which she was, but it was definitely a panicky moment for us!  So, bye bye swaddle!!!

Unusual sleeping.....

Olivia has always liked pulling things over her face to help her fall asleep.  When she was really little this made me very nervous.....still does!  She will pull her bib or burp cloth over her face and just stare at it until she falls asleep.  She will lay on her back between us on the couch with a burp cloth under her head and she will find the end of it and fold it up against her face with her little hand to help her sleep.  So, last night, she wiggled her way to the back of the couch and this is how she fell asleep.......

Zzzzzzzzzzzz

Visit with Nana and Papa

Nana and Papa came to visit on Saturday and Olivia dressed up for the occasion!  Grandma and Grandpa bought her the cutest dress that she can't wear during the week at school because it's just too cold!  So, we took advantage of the warm weather and put her in her party dress!

Am I cute or what?

For dinner, Lee smoked a beef roast and we tried soft tacos again.  Corn salsa and all.  It was a big hit!  Lee tried his hand at making Mexican Rice.  Still have some work to do on that one, but it will end up being a crowd favorite!

Nana and Papa were very excited to spend time with Olivia and Andrew and even bought some gifts for them!  Andrew took away some Redskins pens and Baby Girl will be sporting her new Redskins bib (photo to come) during the next game!  She also got a new book.  The best gift of the day was the classic Tupperware toy that EVERY kid must have!!! 

You remember this don't you????

Olivia got a lot of "hold" time with Nana and Papa!

The weather was beautiful , so after we finished eating, we went outside and enjoyed some peach cobbler with vanila ice cream on the deck!  Olivia enjoyed sitting outside in her high chair.

Here's lookin' at you kid!

What a great day with family!