{One year}

Happy Birthday Baby O!!!

One year ago today, our sweet sweet girl came into this world and we became parents. She brings so much joy and happiness to our lives, I really can't explain it. One year ago today, we had no idea what we were getting ourselves in to. She is the craziest, cutest, funniest, most amazing, and absolutely beautiful baby girl. I don't know what I'd do without her.

I have felt more love for this sweet little girl than I ever imagined was possible. We still sneak into her bedroom each and every night, after she's drifted off to sleep, to peak in at her and gaze at how peaceful and innocent she is. We are so thankfulshe is ours. She has brought so much meaning to my life, and has taught me so much about myself. Everyday I am amazed at what she learns, and I love that I get to watch her grow. She is by far the sweetest blessing of our lives so far.

Such a treat to watch her discover the world...she found an ant.

still watching that ant (her cheek is a perfect ball!)

I have such a bittersweet feeling. I'm so proud of my baby girl for how she's grown and what a beautiful little girl she is, but my heart hurts just a little because I know she will never be a baby again. I felt the need to look through a bunch of old photos we have of her, and it brought tears to my eyes. I am so grateful for the blessing of her spirit in our family. She will be such a great big sister to her siblings (no I'm not pregnant, but I might be a little baby hungry).

And now for a thorough update on what the little miss is up to:

-knows how to sign 'more'

she does awesome at this. For awhile she would make a lowgrunting noise when she wanted more food, so we were happy to teach her thesign for 'more'.Eventually, all we had to tell her was "say more please" and she would do the sign for 'more'.Then all wehad to say was "what do you say Olivia" and she would do the sign. Now she does the sign for EVERYTHING. So....not sure we taught her correctly but its still cute, and she's still communicating what she wants to us without grunting (although she now screams sometimes if we get itwrong).

-Continues to LOVE the outdoors

-bracelets are her favorite.

She always takes mine off and puts them on all by herself. The 2 smaller ones on her wrist are actually my hoop earrings.

-she can tell when we mean business...

...and cries when we say 'no'. It makes me feel like the worst person in the world, and I have since learned to just say 'Olivia, no no' in a sweet voice. She's a sensitive girl (like her mama) and I love that about her.

-i love her curls so much, i can't even handle it.

She is lucky her daddy gave them to her. I know everyone with curls says how she'll hate it when she's older. Well don't worry, I'll be there to let her how hard life is when you have straight hair that won't even curl with a curling iron. Its hard guys ;)

-says 'uh-oh' (which sounds more like ah-oh) 'yeah' 'dada' & 'mama' (still only when she's crying)

-she loves to be sung to.

always has. sometimes she even 'sings' along. I can't really explain it but it is the sweetest thing ever.

-runs to the fridge when it opens.

She literally just stood in there. I had to pry her away so I could close it. Don't mind the mess that is our refrigerator.

-bounces

to music or really anything with a beat (including the dryer).

-she says yeah to everything.

we can now have hilarious conversations with her

ex: are you the cutest thing Olivia - "yeah"

do you love mommy and daddy - "yeah"

is daddy funny lookin - "yeah"

do love to pull mama's hair - "yeah"

and it goes on and on- the possibilities are endless

-I've been working on teaching her the sounds that animals make, and not really making any progress. She does laugh every time I say "ruff ruff" for a doggie, so I decided to focus on the sound a doggie makes since she LOVES dogs and seems to enjoy that one the most. Now when I ask her what sound a doggy makes she yells "YEAH YEAH"

-eats dirt.

(you can only say 'no no' so many times. sometimes you gotta let the kid make her own mistakes)

-She is great at walking, but she absolutely does not watch where she's going. She'll walk right into a table that's her height, because she's looking somewhere else. This also means that she frequently has a bruise on her forehead.

Does she not look like a 5 yr old here?

-she now has 2 teeth!

Her two front teeth are coming close behind, I can see them.

-teething...

...is not her favorite. She is a different baby when she's teething. Its almost crazy. One day she is her normal, happy, funny self, walking all over and playing independently, then the next day she is CLING-Y and literally will not let me put her down. Even when I'm holding her, she's crying. The poor poor thing. Its those days that I am the most worn out and don't know if I can have the patience for one more hour of non stop crying...but I do love the part where she's so cuddly and huggy. I always cuddle and rock her extra long on those days when putting her to sleep. Sometimes even letting her fall asleep in my arms which is a big no no, I know, but I can't help it. We both need it on those days.

Okay, I can't stand it. Here is one baby photo. Look at how tiny and chubby and bald she is!!! I love her!