Thursday, September 16, 2010

{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!

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, sweetest Baby O!! I cannot believe a year has gone so fast! You are an absolutely beautiful one year old!! I love all these sweet, beautiful pictures! I love all you are doing! What a true JOY you are! Have a very special day and know we are thinking of you and wish we could be there to sing happy birthday and see you eat cake and watch you open presents! Maybe we could do a little skype tonight?
Love you,
grammy and grampy

Doug and Bethany said...

Oh my goodness, she is so cute! Happy Birthday baby Olivia!

Christy Gunnell said...

Congratulations Taryn and Brady! You made it through the first year. O is so so adorable! She is so fun to watch at church. I can't believe she is 1 already. Goodness!

Kris and Megan said...

She is so precious!! It is so fun to read updates and how you feel about her, because that's exactly how I (and any mother probably!) feel about my little guy. Babies fill holes in your life you didn't know you had and make you appreciate and rediscover the simple things in life. So glad you are crazy about that baby girl and how happy you three are together!

Debi said...

Oh my sweet little Olivia...can't believe that you are one today!!! I remember rushing to see you after you were born and that seems like just yesterday!
You have brought our whole family so much joy, especially your wonderful parents.
We love you little sweetheart.]
P.S. Heard Avery is in town for a little playtime.
Wish Grandpa, Haylee and I could be there...we will visit real soon.
Please have your parents call us so we can see your beautiful face,

Love you little (big) girl!!!!

Grandma Debi :)

Dave and Jessica said...

Happy Birthday! She is 1 crazy...and beautiful as ever!

danielle said...

she sure is growing up. I love all of those pics of her. her sweet little blue eyes and curls and I love how curious she is about everything.

Sarah said...

Happy Birthday teeny girlie! Man, time flies! I know its bittersweet for you, but its exciting for me because the older Olivia gets, the more fun she and Addie have together!

Natalie Bergin said...

She is beautiful...and I am one curly haired person that says she will LOVE it when she is older. It is so easy to do curly hair (at least I think so).

Dev & Di said...

I cant believe it has already been a year. I remember when you first had her and i didnt have a clinic partner for like a week hah and nows shes one! Shes adorable.

Andrea and Reid said...

Happy birthday Little Olivia!! She has the BEST birthday in the world! And she is so stinking cute! I can't believe how big she has gotten. SSOO Adorable!!!!

Stephany said...

Happy Birthday Olivia! Taryn - she is beautiful! It is a bitter sweet experience when they get older, but just get ready for all the fun.

Scottie and Angie said...

What a precious post! Happy Birthday to O:) I can't believe she is really a year old.

Carrie said...

aww! that last pic is so sweet. i had to pick a baby pic for colsie to bring to show and tell last week and went through the same thing. i ended up looking through the boys' baby albums and getting a little teary-eyed. they're SO SWEET and grow up so fast. that's why i'm really happy to have another baby on the way.

happy birthday sweet livy loo! we love you and can't wait to see you tomorrow!

Leandra said...

Our babies have the same birthday! Can't believe she's one! She's so cute- love the pictures of her finding the ant.

mandy harline said...

Wow, I can't believe it's been a year already! Time flies when you're having fun, huh?! You and Brady have done a wonderful job with that beautiful angel. Lots of love to Olivia! Oh, I love the last photo....she looks like a baby doll!