Our Journey to........

Christmas Day 2011

2011-12-30T14:29:00.002-05:00

Another Christmas, come and gone! Christmas is so much fun with a little one. Olivia visited Santa for the first time this year and not only did she tell him she wanted American Girl doll, "Julie" and Julie's 70's bed, but she colored a special picture just for him and he loved it!

Christmas morning Olivia woke and came to our room with her dolls, Lilly and Molly. She asked them if they were ready to meet their new sister, Julie. She said they were very excited to be getting a new sister. When we went down to see if Santa had brought Julie and her bed she thought we opened the bed because I didn't wrap it. She didn't notice Julie in the box at first, but when she did, she was so excited!

All ready for the morning!!

She dropped both Lilly and Molly on the floor and then ran to pick up Julie. She hugged and kissed the box. She was so happy to have her. Once she was removed from the box, she had each of her dolls, Lilly and Molly give her a hug and say hello to their new sister. Even though they are her babies, Olivia said that Bill is not their Grandpa, because Grandpa's are old and he isn't old. He is flattered, but I told him not to get used to it because one day she won't be telling him that.

Meeting Molley

Meeting Lilly

Her letter from Santa!

Picture and frame that she made for us at school!

Julie and her sisters at the table for dinner Christmas day. She stacked books and boxes on a chair so Julie was high enough to reach the table.

The aftermath of opening presents.

Josh and Olivia

Matt, Josh, Steve, Michael

Debbie and Mike

Michael's gifts wrapped once again in various duct tape. A knife is required in order to open them.

Yay!!! Princess memory game! She left hers at the beach this summer and she missed it.

Very bright sweatshirt!!

Very cool working washing machine for her doll Julie!

The rest of the pictures are outtakes and few good family pictures. I had to include the outtakes cuz they are pretty funny.

Not the never ending positions of Debbie's head. She's trying to find her good side.

This was a great Christmas! Now on to 2012.

Christmas Eve 2011

2011-12-26T13:13:00.001-05:00

Another Christmas Eve has come and gone! As usual we had too much food, but scaling back is not an option. We had a lot of fun and of course the night was finished off with the traditional reading of "Twas The Night Before Christmas" by Aunt Debbie. This year we had the added delight of Aunt Lynn reading a newer version of the story. Although it's the same story the pictures are more up to date then the 28 year old version my sister reads. Either way it is always fun to hear the story again.

Preparing Fettuccine Alfredo, linguine with clam sauce, shrimp scampi, greens, fried shrimp, fried scallops, fried calamari, Cole Slaw, fried asparagus patties, and much more. MMMMMMmmmmmmmMMMMM!!!!

Frying the scallops

The boys. Harvey was offended that Brian got right in front of him and blocked him from being front and center.

Steve and Lynn

I asked the kids to get in front of the tree so I could take a picture of them and in walked Harvey and sat right down in the middle. He was ready to have his picture taken. Look how happy he is. He sat there for the entire time taking pictures and once I said I was done he got up and walked away. He is so funny.

Love this picture.

And this one. I must have taken about 20 different ones and Harvey just sat there posed perfectly in front of the camera. I had to instruct the kids more then I did him.

Debbie and Mike, the hostesses of the year.

Somebody loves that Fettuccine Alfredo.

Morgan does too.

and Madison.

Brian and Paige

We can trash a kitchen.

Michael's famous chocolate chip cookies.

They are so good, light and delicious.

All the kids competing for who is taller then Aunt Lynn. Sorry kids, maybe next year and Olivia maybe in 5 years.

When we got home Christmas Eve, Olivia was very sad that her elf Sammy would be going back to the North Pole and she wouldn't see him until next year. So she wrote him a letter and wrapped it in Christmas paper. We weren't allowed to see it. She then put it in front of Sammy and said a very sad good-Bye to him. She kept saying she was going to miss him.

There it is the gift for Sammy! See you next year. Although you may need to make a guest appearance sometime in July. Won't that be fun.

Forever Family Day #4

2011-11-22T19:13:00.000-05:00

Well, I have missed posting on my blog. I enjoy coming back to it and looking at all the archives. Seeing the pictures of Olivia over the years is so much fun! So I am going to try to be good about posting here as much as possible.

Today marks 4 years that we have been a family!! November 22, 2007 was Thanksgiving day! We were the most thankful people in the world that day!! We couldn't wait to get to Guatemala and meet our daughter! It was by far the best day of our lives!

Olivia is such a joy!! We have so much fun with her and can't believe how lucky we are to have been given such a precious gift. She is kind and thoughtful. She is funny and loving. Every time we are out in public, at least one random person will stop and tell me how beautiful my daughter is!! I wish I could take the credit for that, but of course I had nothing to do with it. Her beautiful birth Mother in Guatemala, who was so brave and giving, gets all the credit for this beauty. I am so proud to have her in my life and to be able to call her my daughter.............forever!!

We love you Olivia Grace!!! Happy 4th Forever Family Day!!!! Enjoy your Scooby Doo DVD and books!!

Olivia's 1st dance Competition

2011-02-28T21:59:00.000-05:00

Olivia had her very first dance competition this weekend in Winston Salem. She did awesome. She and the 6 other kids on the team were the youngest competitors there. They performed a really cute routine to "When I'm Human" from The Princess and the Frog movie. Olivia was a ladybug. All of the kids looked adorable and the judges loved them. They won first place. Not only did they win first place but they scored high enough to get a first place platinum award and qualified for the National competition.

The little ones were also in a production called "Candyland" which included the older kids on the team. This won 1st prize overall and Judges Choice award for Most Entertaining. They were invited to Nationals for free to perform this number again. The little kids did awesome.

Here are some pictures from the weekend.

Holloween 2010

2010-11-26T12:39:00.001-05:00

These are some pictures from Halloween. We went to Hillridge farms and Olivia had a blast. She was a little afraid of the long tunnel slide. That was the first time I had ever been there and I didn't know how fast and bumpy the ride is. When we got to the bottom she started to cry. I asked her if she wanted to go again and she said no! She had fun on the hay ride and picking out pumpkins.

Olivia was Pocahontas for Halloween. She had a blast Trick-or-Treating, even though she was a little shy she really enjoyed it.

My sister's dog Ruby went Trick-or-Treating with us. She dressed up as a witch.

Labor Day Weekend!

2010-09-09T20:40:00.000-04:00

We spent the weekend on Topsail Island, pronounced Topsul. The weather was perfect, the water was perfect, and the ocean front accommodations were perfect.

Sunrise on the beach. Rolled over in bed and this was what I saw, so I had to go outside and take a few pictures.

Olivia tried and tried to catch this bird.

There was a wedding 4 houses up from us on the beach. It was a beautiful night for a wedding. The sunset was so colorful and it reflected on the ocean and the wet sand.

Here you can see a little of the sunset shining on the water.

I can't wait to get my other computer fixed so I can edit this picture. I would love to use a few Florabella actions to really make it a nice picture.

Love this picture too.

Guatemala Poem

2010-08-25T21:15:00.000-04:00

I know what you all are thinking......."2 posts in 2 days, she must be sick". I am not sick just really wanted to share this poem with you. I put it on my facebook page but wanted to put it on my blog so I will have it forever.

This poem was written by Olivia's preschool teacher, Ms. Cyndi, who went to La Limonada, Guatemala last week for a mission trip in the ghetto. She spent one day back at the house not feeling too well and began reflecting on the trip thus far and what could she get out of the day spent alone not working with the people of La Limonada. Writing this poem was what she was meant to do. It is wonderful and I know that everyone will enjoy it especially those who have been touched by Guatemala. Enjoy!!

In La Limonada, as I walk through the street,

I see many faces of the people we meet.

I see their small homes, some broken, some worn,

I see their possessions, what little they own.

I smell the pungent aroma of sewage all day,

And ask how they can live in this way.

Why is it like this?

What can we do?

What would you do if it happened to you?

The sadness they must feel, the anger, the fears,

Enough to flood all the streets with their tears.

I expected to hear crying and see signs of depression,

I expect to see sorrow, and expected aggression.

But instead I heard laughter and sounds of joy,

As children played with their only toy.

I saw friends and families working as one,

To make the best because life must go on.

The schools in the ghetto offer the kids love,

They offer them hope from the one above.

They do all they can with all that they’ve got,

But I know it’s not easy, because it’s not a lot.

I have much respect for the teachers here,

For what they must see all thru the year.

Soon I will return to my life back at home,

But how this has changed me is still yet unknown.

Why is it like this, I do not know.

I can not understand why they just don’t go.

But where would they run to?

What would they do?

What would you do if it happened to you?

We're still here!

2010-08-24T21:30:00.000-04:00

Well, it sure has been a while. There has been a lot going on here and nothing going on here all at the same time, if you can believe that. It has been a long HOT summer. We have not been doing anything that requires being outside unless we are in the pool. This is our first summer without our pool. Actually it is our second summer without our pool because we stayed at my mother's last year while the house was being built but it was not nearly as hot as it has been this summer. We went from winter to summer in a matter of 24 hours back in March and the heat hasn't let up yet. Thank God for central air.

Olivia has been to my sister's community pool and has been doing so great jumping in and going underwater. We are working on floating and kicking, but she would rather just jump in and go under because it is more fun. We are hoping to take her to the beach in the next couple of weeks. Although at the rate we are going summer is never going to end and we have plenty of beach time left.

Olivia is on the Company Elite Dance Team and taking regular lessons so she is pretty busy which in turn keeps me busy.

She is transferring to the new Goddard School that is 2 minutes from our house. It should be a lot easier for me in the morning and in the afternoon. Right now I am spending about an hour in the car traveling to bring her to school and then going on to work and then another hour coming home. This should save me a lot of drive time and gas. Hopefully she will like it there. She is a little sad about leaving all of her friends and teachers but I know she will make new friends quickly, she always does. September 1st is the big day for her in her new class.

I took Olivia and my mother to see the musical "Annie" in July. She loved it. It was very emotional for me to see her watching the opening act with such awe and amazement on her face. It was also pretty special because when I was young and went to see "Annie" the girl who played Annie was in this production playing Miss Hanigan. So it was a pretty sentimental time for me and my baby.

Well, without further a do here are some pictures of little Miss. I haven't taken too many because we haven't been doing anything worth taking pictures. But here are a few cute pics of her sweet face. Enjoy.

Can't you just hear her laughing. It's intoxicating!

Olivia loves puzzles. She can put together the 100 piece puzzles in no time. I need to find some 200 piece ones for her. She likes to start in the middle and it drives me nuts because I always start with the outside and then build from there, but she doesn't like to do the outside first.

Olivia was helping her Daddy put up the new blue bird house. We had a nest and 4 eggs were laid, but unfortunately none of them made it. I am sure the extreme heat and the fact that this was a young mama had something to do with them not surviving. Next year will be better. Olivia loves her blue birds.

Cutie Patootie

Besos!!

Oh, yeah I forgot we went to the museum in Durham. We love that place. Especially the animals. Our friend Max the cow is our favorite. we get to pet him.

This bird pooped on me in the butterfly house. I thought he was cute until that happened. Olivia was grossed out.

Banging the drums at the museum

Company dance practice last Saturday. She was there from 11:30 am to 5:00 pm and she learned two dance routines. She was so tired when we got there to watch them at 4:30pm. She did great though and not only did she learn her two dances but she also learned quite a few of the older girls steps as well. Their costumes are so cute I can't wait to see their routine polished and performing on stage.

Update

2010-06-21T19:57:00.001-04:00

Olivia has been a busy little girl. Her NaNa from NY visited for a week and was able to attend her recital. Olivia almost didn't make it to dress rehearsal because as I was curling her hair with the curling iron, I dropped it on her wrist by accident and burned her skin pretty bad. I was devastated. I couldn't believe I did that to my baby girl. She cried and cried. then fell asleep. We woke her just in time to get to dress rehearsal. She didn't seem to be bothered by her burn much past the initial pain. I had some really great prescription burn medicine that helped a lot. You can see her burn in the picture below of her getting her hair done on the front porch. It looks so much better now. Her skin pigment is starting to come back and it doesn't hurt at all.

It has been so hot here that Olivia has been going swimming with my sister in her community pool. She is getting darker and darker. Five minutes in the sun and she has a tan line. I am so jealous of her beautiful skin color.

Olivia also auditioned for the Company Elite Dance Team with her Dance Studio. She was invited to join the team based on her audition. She has been offered a group dance and a solo. I am so proud of her. She is becoming a great little dancer. If we accept all the dance invitations she will be performing at the Raleigh Christmas Tree Lighting , Disney World and 2 competitions one in Myrtle Beach and one in Winston Salem. I am a little nervous about her doing a solo but I think it will be good for her. Dance has taught her so much. She has gained so much confidence.

Right now she is in a summer dance class and she is doing tap and ballet, the company stuff won't start until August and she will also have her regular dance class for the 2010 - 2011 season.

She is starting swimming lessons this Friday and I am very excited for her to do that. She loves the water and the sooner she learns to swim the better I will feel. I sure do miss our pool though. It has been HOT HOT HOT here.

At the end of July I will be taking her and my Mother to see the musical 'Annie' she is so excited.

I think that's it for right now. All I know is that I'm tired and for the first time in my life I have to keep a calendar to keep track of Olivia's schedule. She takes it all in stride and I am a nervous wreck. Hopefully this will teach me a few things about time management. I am not so good at doing things in advance so I don't have to rush around last minute.

Here are some random cute pictures of Olivia. Enjoy!

That smile melts my heart!

I wish I knew she had a dirty face before I started taking pictures, but this smile is just too cute even with a dirty face.

Nana and Olivia took turns putting rollers in each other's hair to make curls.

Miss Shelly painted a flower on Olivia's face. She was sweaty so some of it wiped off but it looked cute anyway.

New dance leotard.

This picture is hard to see because she was moving so fast, but it's funny because she was in her room playing dress up and came out in this onsie. It is a size 3 to 6 months infant and it was going to be a gift for a baby boy but she stretched it out a little. I was cracking up that she actually got her body in it. The picture below shows how short it was on her. It crept pretty good in the front and the back.

Wild thing!!

Helping Daddy put up our new Blue Bird house

Spring Recital

2010-06-06T21:58:00.001-04:00

Olivia had her Spring Recital last night. She was the opening act dancing to "Broadway Baby". This was the best opening act ever!!! She did an awesome job and so did all the other dancers. I can't wait until the video comes in so I can show her what a great job she did. She amazes me that she goes on stage and dances in front of a huge audience and doesn't even get nervous. Her teacher was off stage to the right and the children could follow her so they wouldn't forget the routine. Olivia kept her focus on her teacher and every once in while she looked out at the audiance to see if she could find us.

We are so proud of our little dancer!!!

Here are some awesome pictures courtesy of TC Photography, (AKA Bella's Dad).

A great shot of the entire stage. Olivia is the 4th from the left and Bella is right next to her to the right.

How cute are these dancers!!!!!!

The cutest bopsy twins ever!!!! Olivia is always singing along when she dances.

Love this pose.

Finale with all the dancers on stage.

The most beautiful dancers ever! Congratulations on a great show, Broadway Baby's!!

Guatemalan Shirley Temple

2010-04-26T22:51:00.000-04:00

I am pretty sure that this is the first Guatemalan that ever looked like Shirley Temple. This is Olivia after the rollers came out of her hair (see previous post). All I can say is SILLY....SILLY......SILLY.

Olivia loved her curls, but Mommy needs more practice so the curls aren't so tight.

She is such a little actress.

Random pics of our cutie pie!

2010-04-25T12:48:00.000-04:00

Sassy!!!

Sweet!!!

Super Star!!

This Precious little girl steals my heart over and over!!!

We are practicing putting curls in her hair for her spring dance recital. She was very cooperative. Hopefully it works and they stay in if not I have to come up with plan B.

Silly girl.....she is wearing her new satin pajamas.

All dressed up for picture day at school.

I realize I haven't been bloggin much lately and I need to find time to do it. There are so many funny sweet things that Olivia does and I realized that if I don't write them somewhere that I can look back on them some day I will forget them all. So here is hopefully the first of many stories that I will share with you. It is funnier if you hear me explain it and have heard Olivia talk, but you will get the idea:

Bill has a knee injury of some sort. He will finally see a doctor this coming Friday but until then he is trying to ease the discomfort with over the counter remedies. He came home with a small glass jar containing "Tiger Balm". I have never heard of it but he said it was like Ben-Gay only better. After he put it on he came downstairs where Olivia and I were. As soon as he walked in the room Olivia says: "EWWWW!!! What's that smell?" Then I got a whiff and reiterated her statement. To which Bill replies: "It doesn't smell that bad." and went back upstairs. Shortly after that Olivia and I went up to go to bed. Olivia went in our bedroom where Bill was laying down. She went went directly to my night stand and grabbed the bottle of lotion. This is how the remainder of the conversation went:

Me: "Olivia, please put the lotion back. You don't need any more lotion, it's time to go to bed."

Olivia: "I know Momma, but I need to put some under my nose so I don't have to smell Daddy's stuff. It STINKS!"

Me: Lauging

Olivia: "If I put this under my nose I will smell the lotion instead of Daddy's stuff"

Bill to Olivia: "Why are you in here?"

Olivia: "Because I love you and my Momma".........."The lotion's not working you have to go wash that stuff off Daddy, it stinks."

Bill: "If you go in your own bed you won't smell it"

Olivia: "But I don't want to go in my own bed so please go wash that stuff off"

Bill: "I am not washing it off so if you don't want to smell it then you need to go in your own bed."

She decided that she would much rather be with us then in her romm alone, so she quit complaining, but not before telling him that he should never use that stuff again........."okay Daddy?" To which Bill says..."Why are you in here?" She just smiles and gives him a big kiss and says....."I love you Daddy!" She's no dummie. Bill doesn't need me to harrass him because Olivia is doing a great job all by herself. She is 3 going on 33. I still for the life of me can't believe that she figured out if she put lotion under her nose it would override other smells. I swear she has never watched CSI or anything like that. Common sense is a wonderful thing

Easter 2010

2010-04-12T12:58:00.000-04:00

We had a great Easter this year, (yes I know that was a week ago, but I'm behind again). Olivia was very much into the Easter Bunny and was very excited that he was coming to fill her basket and hide eggs with treats in them. The one she is getting from the top of the front door was strategically placed so that when she woke up to come in our room to wake us, she would look down into the foyer and see this egg, which she did. She came running into our room telling us that the Easter Bunny had been here and left eggs for her to find. She was so excited!!

She as very excited to find her basket and chocolate bunny!

In place of a lot of candy our Olivia got books, an Olivia doll, watering can, gardening gloves and nail polish. But it wouldn't be Easter without a Palmer's hollow chocolate bunny and some Jelly Belly's.

Olivia is one of her favorite shows. She has two books and this is her third. She can "read" them back to you word for word.

The oh so prissy, Miss Olivia, hunting for eggs at Aunt Debbie's house.

Madison, Morgan, Olivia and Josh

After dinner we took a trip to the park for the kids to play. Olivia had a blast playing with the big kids.

Attempting to steal the basketball from Madison. She kept up with the big kids, but was too short to make a basket.

It's been a while......

2010-04-06T22:58:00.000-04:00

Wow, I didn't think it had been this long since I last posted, time flies when you are having fun.
I hope everyone had great Easter! I will post Easter pictures soon. For now here are some pictures to hold you over.

Our little Bookworm! She loves to read!

Olivia's friends Natalie and Brooke had a Princess and Pirate birthday party at the dance studio. Olivia "Snow White" had a great time.

"Someday my Prince will come"

Isabella, Bella, and Olivia.....the prettiest Snow Whites ever!!

Olivia and Bella

Cuties

Olivia painting her Easter Eggs.

My little lefty.

One of her masterpieces in progress. She had a great time painting her eggs. It was more fun then putting them in the cup and waiting for them to dye.

Olivia's 3rd Birthday Party!

2010-02-16T23:17:00.000-05:00

Well, two weeks has passed since the snow arrived and forced us to cancel Olivia's 3rd birthday party and eventhough we had snow again on Saturday the roads were fine and we were able to give Olivia her long awaited birthday party.

Olivia shared the spotlight with her best friend Bella. They were born 2 weeks apart and their adoptions were completed 2 weeks apart and they have a very special friendship. All of their friends gathered at the dance studio dressed up and ready to dance, dance, dance! They had a blast!

Work it Bella!!

Bella getting ready to do her Chinese Ribbon dance.

For this part of the dance party, Ms Chasta, Olivia's dance instructor told the children to pick an adult to dance with. I called Olivia over and asked her to pick someone to dance with, "Do you want to dance with Daddy or Grammie?" to which without hesitation she answered, "No, I want to dance with Ms. Chasta." I told her that she needed to go ask her. So she ran across the room and asked Ms. Chasta to dance with her. You can tell by the look on her face in this picture that she was very happy that Ms. Chasta agreed.

Olivia was so excited when she got to open her gifts. Her friends gave her great gifts.

Ms. Heather (AKA Bellas Mommy) made Olivia this awesome hat. Olivia was very excited about it.

Showing me a twirl but she didn't want to put down the M&Ms.

Thank you for putting the M&Ms down.

Happy 3rd Birthday again our sweet Olivia Grace! We love you so much!

Happy Valentine's Day

2010-02-12T22:39:00.000-05:00

Olivia helped me to make valentines for her class mates. They had a party today and she was very excited to give out her handmade valentines to all her friends and teachers. These were fun and easy projects. I did all the cutting and Olivia assembled them all. I realized after she gave them out today that I made one mistake. When she assembled the 3 hearts and the leaves to make the flower I should have hot glued them together because once the kids took the lollipop out of the center the flower came apart. Duh....!!!! Now I know I need to think a little further and realize that the kids don't want to look at how beautiful the flower is they want to eat the lollipop.......now! Oh well, lesson learned. They were cute just the same and she (we) had fun making them.

The owls were for the boys! Isn't he cute!

Pictures from Dance Class

2010-02-11T23:08:00.000-05:00

This week was parent observation week at Olivia's dance studio. We got to go into the room and actually watch the entire class rather than sitting in the lobby and watching on the closed circuit TV. It was a lot of fun and Olivia did AWESOME! She really paid attention and wasn't shy with all of the parents in the room. She is really getting very good at dance. Her teacher said that she has made remarkable progress since August and she is recommending that she move up to the next class. She has really come out of her shell and she really loves dancing. Her next recital is in June and I can't wait to see her dancing on stage again. Mommy and Daddy are so proud of you!!

The older girls in the background are from the older classes and they help out with the little ones. Olivia loves Sophie and Cassie.

Suzy Snowflake

2010-01-30T21:41:00.005-05:00

Here is a link to a video of Olivia dancing to the song she did for her Christmas recital. Olivia Dancing to Suzy Snowflake
For two weeks after the recital I had to play Suzy Snowflake so she could dance to it. She dressed up in her play dress up clothes and danced over and over and over again.
Olivia loves dance class and she is doing very well. She even gives me lessons and corrects me when I do it wrong. Miss Chasta her dance teacher would be proud.

Snow!

2010-01-30T21:35:00.000-05:00

The party is canceled!......................for now.

2010-01-29T21:02:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow was supposed to be Olivia's 3rd birthday celebration with all her friends. She and her best friend Bella are 2 weeks apart in age so we decided to do a joint, dress up and dance party at the girls dance studio. We invited Olivia's friends, we invited Bella's friends and we invited all their friends from school, we have everything ready for a really fun dress up and dance party but, the snow.......yes, snow........yes, in Raleigh............ yes, there is panic in the streets..........and yes, the party is canceled because of the snow. Of all the weekends that we could have snow why this one! We are pretty bummed out that we had to cancel, but we are happy that we were able to reschedule the party to the 13th of February.
Olivia was pretty disappointed when I told her that we had to cancel the party, but as soon as I told her that we were going to get snow she was okay with it.
It is now 9pm and we have over an inch of snow already. We are supposed to get a lot more where this is coming from. We may be snowed in tomorrow but we are all right with it. As long as we don't lose power or Internet, we'll be fine.

I hope to get some good pictures tomorrow of the snow.

Here are some pictures that Olivia's foster family sent her for her birthday, they sure do love our little girl!!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Again!

2010-01-24T21:12:00.000-05:00

Yesterday our family came over for dinner to celebrate Olivia's birthday! She had a lot of fun and got a lot of cool presents.

The Birthday banner that I made.

Birthday cake

I made a few decorations for the dining room. Wish I had time to make more it would have looked better. I put them up while Olivia was napping and when she came down the stairs and saw them she was very excited.

Bill made some great food. We had black and re-fried beans. Chicken tacos, beef tacos, steak quesadilla, guacamole, queso and salsa. Everything was delicioso!

Blowing out her candles. She was able to blow 3 at once but missed the one for good luck.

She is so talented!! LOL

Olivia got a lot of new accessories for her new baby doll.

Sassy girl!

Lilly

Uh, Oh she left Lilly unattended in the shopping cart. Someone call social services.

Me and my girl!

Next Saturday she and her best friend Bella are having all their friends gather for a dance party to celebrate both of their birthdays. We are so excited!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Olivia!!!!

2010-01-22T23:26:00.000-05:00

My oh my how time flies!!! We can't believe our sweet baby girl is 3 years old! She had a great day today. When she woke up this morning she said, "Mama, is it my birthday today?" She had been telling everyone all week that it was January 22nd. Friday. Anyone who entered the room new it was her birthday on Friday.
I made her a Birthday Girl t-shirt and brought cupcakes and ice cream, and juice to school after nap today. She got very shy when we all sang happy birthday to her. I don't think she was fully awake yet. Once she woke up and had some sugar she was her old self.
For dinner we went to our favorite Mexican restaurant. Olivia was surprisingly not shy this time. She ordered her "macamole" (guacamole dip) and then told the waiter "today is my birthday". he asked her how old she was and what her name was and to our surprise she actually answered him. The waiter told her that if she ate like a good girl that he would have a surprise treat for her. She was very excited about that. She kept asking "what kind of present is the man going to bring me." We told her she had to eat if she wanted to find out. She did great and before we knew it the waiter and about 6 other waiters brought her a big tortilla dish filled with fried ice cream, chocolate sauce, whipped cream, cherry and a candle. They all sang a traditional song. I have never heard before and then told her to blow out her candle. She was so surprised and she blew out her candle without hesitation then stole the cherry off the top of the ice cream. We were so proud of her. She is usually very shy and won't speak or look at anyone when they try to talk to her, so this was such a treat to have her engage and enjoy every minute of it. After she saw the waiter walking by and said "is he going to get me another present".

When we got home Olivia had a few presents to open from Grammie, NaNa, and Amanda and Uncle Dan.
She was very excited.
Here are some pictures of her from Monday with Daddy, who also had a birthday and for her birthday today.
Two more parties to go.

In order for Bill's wish to come true the person who's birthday is next must make a wish and remove the knife from the cake. Olivia was next so she got to pull the knife out.

Daddy opening his presents.

MMMMMMM......Delicioso!!! Cake and ice cream.

Bill got a new Giada cookbook.

These are the cupcakes that I made for Olivia's party at school today. she picked Strawberry cake with cream cheese frosting. I added cotton candy for decoration. They were mmmm mmmmmm good.

Olivia being shy because everyone was singing Happy Birthday to her.

Another pearl for her add a pearl necklace that NaNa started for her.

If you look closely you will see Olivia and NaNa in this book.

Ms. Shelly made this sign for Olivia and had it facing the door when Olivia walked into her classroom this morning.

Will post more tomorrow.

Christmas 2009

2010-01-18T15:11:00.001-05:00

I know, I know, I have been a very lazy blogger lately. In an effort to catch up I have done two posts in two days.

We had a great Christmas!! Olivia is old enough to truly get into the all aspects of it. She had so much fun looking for her Elf this year and trying to be extra good because he was watching. She had a blast coming down the stairs and seein all the presents under the tree. Santa ate all the cookies and milk she left and he even wrote her a note telling her how good the cookies were and how happy he was that she was such a good girl. Christmas sure is more exciting when seen through the eyes of a child. Here are some pictures of Christmas our first holiday in our new house.

Olivia's school party.

The best package ever!!!!

Sammy Olivia's elf on the shelf joined our family this year. He is back at the north pole and will return next year on December 1st.

Boy, those Pomagranate Martini's are good, right Paige?

Paige's Mom, My Mom, Mike's Mom

Opening her first gift.

I think she likes it.

Lots of Ariel stuff this year. Ariel is her favorite.....for now.

Her first American Girl doll. She named her Lucy but she is being returned because her head falls off. She is getting on of the Bitty Twins to replace it.

Olivia loves to play house and take care of her babies, feed, change, and cook dinner for them.

No there is no leak in our roof.

Michael, Mike, Brian, Matt, Steve, Bill

Michael got a hold of my camera.

The kid's table.

Happy Birthday, Grammie!

Stay tuned...I will have more pictures coming up over the next couple of weeks. Bill's birthday, Olivia's birthday x3 and I am working on a blog makeover.

Dress Rehearsal and Dance Recital

2010-01-17T21:28:00.001-05:00

Olivia had her first dance recital on Dec 18th. She did a great job and we are so proud of her! She danced to Suzy Snowflake. We weren't sure if she would dance on stage or not, she had a history of stage fright every time parents came into the studio to watch her, so we didn't know what would happen on a big stage with a huge audience of people watching her. Much to our surprise she danced. Here are some pictures from dress rehearsal. We weren't allowed to take any pictures during the actual show but, luckily the dress rehearsal was so entertaining that we didn't care that we couldn't video the actual show.
Shutterfly Shared Picture this link will take you to pictures that Bella's Daddy took. Olivia was in front of Bella so she is in every picture. They are kind of repetitive because they went through the routine 4 times. It wasn't until the last run that Olivia did every step. I don't have a video to show you but Olivia insisted on breaking up the circle in the last run because she wanted to hold Bella's hand not the girls next to her. Unfortunately Bella didn't want her to hold her hand so they were struggling with each other. Bella says "we was fightin" It was the funniest thing ever. At the actual show she didn't try to get Bella's hand but it would have been the funniest part of the show if she had.

A few favorites.

2009-11-28T21:45:00.000-05:00

Love this picture.

Love the boots and this pose.

Finally here is a picture of the outside of our house! Olivia is walking up the steps, because she wouldn't sit for me to take the pictures. on the

FFD

2009-11-22T21:57:00.001-05:00

Today we celebrated our second Forever Family Day!! We can't believe it's only been two years since we first held our sweet baby girl in our arms. It seems like she has been with us forever. Olivia loves to hear the story about when we first saw her in Guatemala on Thanksgiving Day, November 22, 2007. We love telling the story just as much as she loves hearing it. We love to hear her say, "We are all together!! We are a family!" "Yes, Baby girl we are a family, forever!"

Then and......

Now

We love you Olivia Grace!!!

Sweet, girl!

2009-11-19T23:11:00.000-05:00

This is Olivia's newest thing to stand with her arms folded like an adult. She won't tell me who taught her how to do this, but she thinks she is something else. I wish the front of her shirt showed, it says "All you need is Love" Beatles. Her Daddy's a long time fan of The Beatles so, naturally he loves this outfit.

More Random Pictures of Olivia

2009-11-14T23:03:00.001-05:00

BFFs

2009-11-10T23:07:00.000-05:00

Olivia's best friend Bella came home with us after school last week and Olivia was in seventh heaven!!! She was so excited that Bella was coming over she couldn't wait to leave school. As soon as I arrived to pick them up Olivia quickly cleaned up what she was doing and grabbed Bella by the hand and said "c'mon Bella you're coming to our house". Hand in hand they walked to gather their stuff and out to the car. They chatted and sang all the way home. After Olivia showed Bella her new home they helped me mix the meatballs and picked wagon wheels as their preferred pasta. They had so much fun together, Olivia didn't want Bella to leave. I reminded her that even though she wants a sister we can't keep Bella......"Why, Momma?"

Anyway we are looking forward to having Bella over again in the near future it was a lot of fun to watch the two of them together.

Helping to mix the meatballs.

Ready to eat!!

Squeaky Clean and still giggling!!

Bed time.......not really.....more like play, jump on the bed, hide under the covers, giggle, giggle, giggle and giggle!! Before they knew it Bella's Daddy was here to pick her up, she wasn't excited about leaving at first but knowing that she could come back again made it a little easier!

Belated Halloween pictures.

2009-11-05T23:10:00.003-05:00

Olivia was Ariel from The Little Mermaid, however she wouldn't wear her wig so on the outside she just looked like a Mermaid but to her she was Ariel. She had a blast trick or treating with my neices and loved the fact that people would give you candy if you said the right thing.

After school on the 30th. They had a party.

Her googly glasses that she got at her party. How cute is this picture!!

Daddy looks cute too......I love the new goatee!!

Madison in her Mom's old elf costume from when she was little and Morgan as a vampire.

Morgan and her friends.

Madison taking Olivia door to door.

Aunt Debbie, Grammie, Aunt Paige, Morgan, Madison and their NaNa.

Elmo and the chicken, AKA Thadeus and Maggie.

Maddie playing a dead Elf in front of her house to scare the trick or treaters.

The front of their house was all decked out. This is blurry but you get the idea. It was pretty spooky which is why the girls wanted to scare the kids.

"Momma, she's dead!!" No she didn't really say that but yes Morgan was playing dead.

Pictures from our trip to Atlanta

2009-11-02T22:28:00.000-05:00

Catching Up

2009-10-18T22:16:00.000-04:00

I know it's been a while since I have posted, but I have been a little busy!!! Moving and unpacking are all consuming, throw a 2 year old in the mix and it's even crazier. We love our new house!! We are still getting settled and because this house is so much bigger than our old house we don't have any furniture on the first floor. Other than our kitchen table and the computer we put everything upstairs in the bedrooms and bonus room. Now I have to find a dining room table and a living room set to complete the downstairs. I don't know if I can get everything done by Christmas but I am going to try. I have an idea what I want. I do want to have the inside painted. The builder did Sienna Sand through the entire house. It looks nice but it is a little too yellow and doesn't go with the way I want to decorate. We also have to move the tree that they planted in the front of the house (Bill has a lot to do LOL!). It is some kind of maple and it will take over the entire house as it grows. What were they thinking. Here are a few pictures of the kitchen, eating area and living room. Bill will doing some built in shelving around the fireplace. Other than paint these rooms just need window treatments paint and decor. My blinds are all up now but I haven't taken a picture yet.

Olivia carrying her cousin's new skate board.

She actually rode on it while we held her hands. She loved it.

It would be nice if everyone would smile like Morgan and take a good picture once in a while.

Olivia was sick the week before last. She wanted to take a bath and I put her clothes on her, then she picked out and put on her socks and shoes (I'd cry too if my outfit looked that bad). Really she was just crying because I went to get something and wasn't carrying her, she didn't feel good at all but wouldn't let me dry her hair, I just had to hold her and do nothing else.

Olivia ended up in the emergency room during that night with croup. She was having such a hard time breathing whenever she would lay down. I tried the steam in the bathroom but that didn't help. She wouldn't sleep sitting up with me, so as soon as she would lay down and fall asleep she would wake up barking and choking and gasping for air. It was pretty scary for her and us. So I decided that she needed to be seen. Off to the ER we went at 1am. They gave her a breathing treatment and some steroids. She was better in about 3 days. She was such a good patient. She did her breathing treatment like a pro.

Olivia loves to help me with whatever I am doing. This day she dried all the dishes for me. She did a great job!!!!

Olivia had a birthday party yesterday at the Museum of Life and Science in Durham. The party included free admission to the museum, so we got to see the new dinosaur exhibit that just opened. In this picture she was afraid to take her picture in front of the dinosaur.

Then she had a change of heart and decided it was safe to have her picture taken.

So cute!!!!!!

Oliva not the dinosaur.

We are headed to Atlanta on Thursday. I have a conference Thursday and Friday and then we are taking Olivia to the Aquarium on Saturday. I hope to have a lot of pictures to share with you. Olivia is very excited about going to the Aquarium.

We've moved!!!

2009-09-28T17:00:00.000-04:00

We are so excited to be in our new house finally!! We closed on it Thursday and moved on Saturday. I have been unpacking since then and will probably be doing it for weeks to come! I will try and post some pictures soon.

Chef Olivia

2009-09-09T09:39:00.001-04:00

Olivia helped make Italian Meatballs for Sunday dinner. She did a great job.

She thought she was going to mix it with a spoon. Us Italians don't mix meatballs with a spoon.

Once I showed her how to mix it she realized it was much easier and more fun to mix with your hands.

She rolled a few balls and then decided to make a "turtle, pig, and a bear". My grandmother would have loved having Olivia in her kitchen helping make the meatballs, animal shapes and all.

Delicioso!!

2009-09-07T13:12:00.000-04:00

I am still playing around with the Canon Rebel. Thank you to everyone who e-mailed or commented to me about their likes and dislikes regarding cameras. Since I am using the Canon I think I may have to go with the Canon, but I doubt I can go wrong with either one. I just have to find a good deal on one, that has an exra lens with it. The 55 mm just doesn't zoom in far enough. Here are some random pics of miss Olivia enjoying her corn dog.

Olivia has quickly learned to love Corn Dogs. She tells me it's "Delicioso". Her newest Spanish word to use when something tastes good. She has learned so much Spanish at school. Not enough to get us around Guatemala yet but maybe by the time she gets out of preschool she will. She counts more often in Spanish than she does in English. She can count to 20 in Spanish and English but she is choosing to do it in Spanish most of the time. Sometimes when she speaks in English she will say the sentence in the order you would say it in Spanish. It's weird.

She has food in her mouth but I love her expression here.

Camera testing

2009-09-03T11:34:00.003-04:00

I tested my friends Canon Rebel out. I am definitely ready to buy a digital SLR camera. I love it. Easy to use and the color and clarity is awesome, not to mention they are fast. Now I have to find a good deal and decide whether I want the Canon Rebel or the Nikon. Any advice from current users is welcome.!!! Click pictures to enlarge

Getting there.

Rose bush in front of new house. I love how this picture came.

Her school leaves crackers in a basket for the kids when they are leaving. I hate them. Nice thought but they are very messy, especially if she tries to open them herself. Crumbs are everywhere.

Almost done

2009-09-01T11:25:00.000-04:00

I need a new camera so I am not posting any new pictures of the house until I get some good shots, but we are almost done. Our closing date is September 24th. We are in the final stages, although I have put a wrench in their process. I am not happy with the brick on the front porch. It doesn't match the brick in the face of the house. Everyone I show it too notices the difference too. So, I am willing to compromise and let them change out the stairs, and the trim around the porch so that they don't have to pull the entire porch off but, I want it fixed before we sign off. We are waiting to hear back from them to find out if they are going to go ahead and do it or if we have to escalate the request to the higher ups. Hopefully they will just do it without a fight and we will close as scheduled. Bill is going to follow up today so we know if we need to contact the higher ups or not.

Other than that the only things left to do are staining the stairs, and finishing touchups. We are scheduled to have our walk through on the 16th. We are very excited about the new house!! I love it!! Olivia is in love with her new comforter set that I bought her. It has lots of blue in it. Blue is her favorite color.

Random Pictures

2009-08-23T13:52:00.008-04:00

Olivia being the true "Italian" that she is.....dishing out my spaghetti using two forks, just like I do.

This picture is from just before we moved to my Mother's. She decided to polish her toes. Notice I said toes....she got more than her nails she actually polished all of her toes, a little on the carpet, a little on the furniture and some on her hands.

Olivia put lip gloss on and wanted her picture taken. "Cheese"

"MMMMM!!!! "

I love this picture, ice cream and all!

Eating her Happy Meal on the soon to be master tub in the new house. This was taken a while ago she wanted to go and eat at the new house and this was the only place to sit. She wanted to watch the workers push the dirt around on the lot up the street. Hopefully she was only interested in the machinery they were using and not the Hispanic men with their shirts off.

"Cheese"....burger

What a difference a day makes.

2009-08-14T21:14:00.003-04:00

We went back to the house today and they had almost completely finished the moldings and they installed the cabinets in the kitchen and bathrooms. the kitchen cabinets are not completely done but it was exciting to see what them. I had forgotten what they looked like.

Olivia hiding in her bedroom closet so she could pop out and surprise me.

Olivia's bathroom

Master bathroom cabinets.

Master bath looking into the master bedroom.

master bedroom looking into the master bath through to the closet.

Some of the kitchen cabinets.

More cabinets

Hopefully they will do more work this weekend so I can get some more pictures. These aren't the greatest because my camera is not doing so well these days.

Another house update

2009-08-13T22:12:00.008-04:00

Our house is coming along great!! They are moving right along with everything. The drywall is finished and they are now installing the interior doors and moldings. that should be completed tomorrow. The outside is almost completed. They still have some trim work to finish and the railings on the porch to install. They will be pouring the concrete for the driveway and walkway tomorrow or the next day.

Our builder's books close at the end of September and I think that there are a lot of bonuses riding on the completion of these houses by a certain date. They are moving right along but their work isn't sloppy. I guess this is a good time to be building right now. We don't have to wait long for the contractors to schedule each phase. They are all readily available because new home construction has slowed down for the moment.

It's getting there.

Laundry room upstairs.

Looking up the stairs. Duh!

Breakfast nook and part of the kitchen.

Living room down stairs.

Master closet

Part of the kitchen

Front porch looking out toward the driveway.

Dining room.

Another picture of the front. I can't wait to see it all done and landscaped. I think it will look totally different. I can't wait to see everything inside done. It was so long ago that I picked my options I have forgotten what I picked. I hope everything looks good together. It's so hard to tell from little samples what things are going to look like. Oh well.

Everything else is going well. We are somewhat settled into a routine at my mother's house. She is spoiling us rotten. Dinner is ready every day when we get home and she has been doing laundry for us too. I am going to miss this royal treatment when we move out. Maybe she can move in with us.

I have lost count as to how many times the dogs have escaped. I have lost track how many times Charlie has peed in the house. He is so dumb! We will definitely be paying for some professional carpet cleaning for my mother when we leave. I wish I could hire the dog whisperer to work some magic on these crazy dogs so they don't ruin our new home. We are less than thrilled to have to bring them there. I love them but they are more work than a child.

Olivia is doing well in her new surroundings. The first couple of weeks were tough. Bill was out of town the entire second week we were here and Olivia didn't like that. This past Saturday she had her last dance class for the summer session. She almost didn't get to go because she was not behaving while I was trying to get her ready for class. She just wanted to be in her Daddy's arms and not let go. We were late and she wouldn't let me put her hair up so she went into class with wild hair, it wasn't even combed. They did a little recital for the parents but she was super shy and froze the minute the parents entered the room. Her dance teacher said that her and her friend Bella are usually the Diva's of the class, but it is normal for them to be nervous when performing. Bella did great. Her teacher said they work a lot on performing so they get used to it. Something tells me that they can work on it all they want but that isn't going to make a difference. Olivia is always shy around people that she doesn't know. It was funny though when the teacher tried to hand her a ribbon to dance with, she wouldn't' take it so the teacher just lay it on the floor in front of her. She came back and tried to put it in her hand but she was like a statue and wouldn't even move her hand to pull away or to grab it. It was pretty funny. Maybe next time. And maybe next time I will have some pictures of Olivia to post.

House Pictures

2009-07-31T10:21:00.005-04:00

Here are a few pictures of the house so far. I will take more when the exterior is finished.

This picture was taken last Friday.

This picture was taken yesterday. They were in the process of painting the body of the house. Bill went to the house a few hours after I did (see picture below) and they had the body completely painted. They still have to paint the shakes on the peaks and finish the trim on the peaks which will probably be done today.

The plumbing, heating, air, electrical are all done. The plumbing has passed inspection, once the others pass inspection then we will have a pre-drywall walk through. Hopefully we are only a week or two away from that.

We've Moved

2009-07-29T22:01:00.002-04:00

We closed on the sale of or house on Monday and moved in with my mother this past weekend. My mother lives only two cul-de-sacs away from us so it is a bit of an adjustment for everyone, including the dogs, when you can see our old house everyday but can't go there anymore. Maggie got loose on Monday and ran right up the street to the old house. The new owner and his family were moving in and Maggie met them at the gate to the back yard. My sister-in-law was here picking up my nieces when Maggie got out so she had to walk all the way up the street to get her and pretend that she was going to let her in the house. The new owner's family watched as Paige told Maggie to go inside. Maggie went into the garage and sat by the door to the house. She was then able to grab her by the collar and walk her back to my mother's. My sister-in-law briefly told the new owner's family that the dog used to live here and doesn't understand why she can't go home. I'm not sure if they understood what she was telling them, I think they just thought the dog was cute and that my sister-in-law was crazy, telling the dog to go in their house and pretending she was going to let her in.

Other than that everything is going pretty well. Olivia is adjusting to her new surroundings for the second time in her short life. At least this time she doesn't have to adjust to a new family just a new home. About the time she gets used to and comfortable with living at Grammies, it will be time to move again. Oh well, hopefully she will become a very flexible person as she grows up. Change is good.

Our house is making great progress. They are putting the finishing touches on the siding and the masons have started the brick on the front of the house. The plumbing is done and passed inspection. The electrical is run and the heating and air contractors were there today working on that installation. It shouldn't be too much longer and we will have a pre-drywall walk through. We are thinking that the house might be ready by the end of September, which is not too far away. We will know more once we have our pre-drywall walk through.

I don't have any pictures to post right now because my computer is not set up. I will try to take some new ones tomorrow so I can post them.

I can still be reached at my usual e-mail address, or on my cell phone.

Where is my baby girl!!

2009-07-15T00:23:00.004-04:00

Somehow our baby girl went from this.................................

To this.............................
From this.............
To this ................
From this...........................

To this.....................

All in the blink of an eye!!!

Even her hair went from this. short.......

To long enough for a french braid.......

I miss this little baby girl, she grew much too fast....

Love those cheeks!!!!

Just learning to walk

Everyone used to tell me she looked too little to be walking.

Olivia's first night in America and this is all she has to say.

Helping me unpack and hang her clothes. Now instead of playing with the hangers she actually hangs up her clothes. She loves to help.

Olivia, You will always be our baby girl!!!!

We love watching you grow......you are beautiful both inside and out!!!!!!

PS: This adorable little outfit came from Aunt Debbie. She got it on one of the islands she visited on a cruise she took before Olivia came home. It finally fits her and she looks adorable. My little island girl.

Can you say "High Maintenance?"

2009-07-01T22:25:00.007-04:00

Well, my little girl just got a little more girly.....and.......higher maintenance!!!

Wonder who she gets that from!!!

She requested that I paint her toes the other day and insisted on wearing open toed shoes to school so she could show everyone her "pretty toes." It's against school policy but I let her, after all why waste a good pedicure by hiding it in your shoes. Then yesterday she asked me to paint her fingernails, and tonight I had to touch all of them up because they had chipped a little. So, she got another mani - pedi before bed and was very careful not to smudge them. She even warned her Daddy not to touch them.

The only tips I got from her were when she told me what order I was going to do thing in. She wouldn't let me do all the color and then go back and do all the clear coat...... No.....I had to put the color on one hand then the clear coat, color on the other hand then the clear coat and so on.

I did get a big hug and a kiss though so I'm over it. Here is my beautiful Olivia....

This one will be going in her hand modeling portfolio. LOL

She'll be insuring her hands and feet with Lloyd's of London.

She has such tiny little feet.

Her manicure was still drying, she is too funny, she walked around holding them up like this so she didn't smudge them.

Ready for bed and still protecting her nails so they don't smudge.

Good night sweet princess!!! Sweet Dreams!!!!

House Update

2009-06-30T08:00:00.000-04:00

Here are a few random pictures of Olivia. I haven't taken too many lately. I need to get a new camera, but for now I will use what I have. Olivia likes using it so the settings are all messed up.

Olivia playing dress up.

I don't know what it is about this picture that I just love, but I do.

Olivia hugged me and said "Daddy take our picture" I just love this sweet girl!!!

Cheese!!

Here is the update on our new house. They have the foundation completed and tomorrow we will meet with the builder to do the pre-constuction meeting to go over everything before they start framing. Hopefully they will start framing by next week. We are so excited. Can't wait to see it framed. We are still packing our current house. It's not easy with a 2 year old to find the time to pack. Bill has the garage emptied and moved to the storage shed. I am slowly working on the inside. We only have 4 weeks left until we have to be out of our house. Here are some pictures of the foundation.

Picture of our foundation to our new house.

From the backyard looking forward to the street.

From the side looking up the street.

From the street looking back.

This is the house next door to the right of us. Olivia was exploring you can see her in the front of the garage.

Olivia exploring the lot on the other side of us.....

and the lot on the corner.

Tiny Dancer

2009-06-13T09:25:00.000-04:00

A new dance studio opened up nearby and they start at age 2. Last weekend was open house and they had demo classes all day long. Olivia went to try out the class that she will be in called The Little Stars. At first she didn't want to go back with all the kids but I gave her to one of the instructors and she got about 3 steps from me and stopped fussing and got down and walked with all the others kids to the studio. They have a closed circuit TV in the lobby so you can watch the lesson in progress. Olivia did great!! She followed directions and did every movement they showed her. I think she is going to love dancing!!! I'm not sure about the recitals though because she is so shy at first and very apprehensive with new situations. We'll see what happens. As long as she has fun that's all I care about.

Next Saturday is her first official class for the summer!!! Here is a sneak peak of her testing out her new dance wear. She is not too fond of the real dance shoes she has, hopefully the teacher can convince her that she needs to wear them.

The dramatic finish.

Another Milestone Met!

2009-06-04T23:23:00.001-04:00

Olivia is potty trained!!!!!! She is wearing panties all day and a pull-up at night just in case. She has been staying dry all day and all night. She is even going poop on the potty!

This past weekend we were out all day both Saturday and Sunday and she told me every time she needed to go potty and when we got to the public restroom she wasn't afraid to use the toilet. A few weeks ago she would say she had to go and as soon as she got to the restroom she would panic and say she didn't need to go, but not anymore she is not afraid any longer.

We are so proud of her and she is so proud of herself. On Saturday after we went to meet her new dance teacher and see the new studio she wanted to go to "Old McDonald's" for a cheeseburger. Of course kids were outside on the jungle gym and she wanted to try it. So we went out and there was a sweet little girl about 7 years old who offered to take Olivia up the stairs, climb through the top over to the slide and down the slide. When she came down the slide she said she had to go potty so in we went. After she peed she exclaimed in the bathroom "Yay, I peed Mommy, I peed!!!" There were several people waiting in line to use the restroom who started laughing. While we washed our hands Olivia again shouted out that she "peed!!!" I told her how proud I was of her, especially since this was the very first time she used a public restroom. She then asked me "can I go tell the kids, Mommy?" I laughed and told her she could if she wanted to . As we approached our table she ran to my mother and shouted "Grammie, I went potty, I not pee in my pants!!!!!" Everyone including my mother was laughing. She then wanted to go outside and tell the kids what she did. So out we went and she told the kids "I went pee pee on the potty!!!" The little girl that took her down the slide smiled and said "that's good" The younger kids just looked at her as if to say, "you are telling us this why?" They were not impressed.

Great job Olivia!!!! Mommy and Daddy are so proud of you!! You are growing up too fast but you will always be our baby girl. We love you!!!

This lake is about 5 minutes from our house. We decided that Olivia would have a lot of fun feeding the ducks so we took a ride over and walked around the lake so she could feed the ducks. Only one wanted to eat and he made a mad dash to get to us. He was a little odd looking. Olivia had fun though.

Olivia feeding the craziest looking duck I have ever seen. She named him "Mr. Qwak" . She called the other ducks to come over and meet Mr. Qwak but they were not interested.

SOLD

2009-05-26T22:43:00.002-04:00

Our house is SOLD!!! We signed the agreement yesterday and we will close on July 26th. I can't believe it!!! I love my house and I love my neighborhood and I will miss it a lot. I will especially miss my pool and being right up the street from my mother. Even though we are going to miss it we are very excited about our new house and it's only about 10 minutes from my mother so it's not that far.

We are building in a new subdivision and hopefully they will start building in a couple of weeks. It will take about 6 months to finish so we will invade my mother's house for the interim until it's finished. It should be fun for all of us.....hopefully;-) She will be going from a quiet peaceful house to one filled with three people, one of which is a two year old and two crazy dogs. Hopefully she can survive and hopefully it won't be for any longer that about 4 months. I am grateful that she will have us at all, dogs included......she is very brave!! Although I think she is only agreeing to it because Olivia will be coming with us. If it was just Bill and I, I am not so sure she would have us. She loves her Olivia.

I will post updates on the new house as they become available. I am very excited!

Holy Cow....it's been a while!!

2009-05-21T00:46:00.001-04:00

Well, I kept telling myself that I needed to do a post because it has been a while but I had know idea it had been this long. We have been pretty busy around here.

We have our house on the market and have had a lot of showings. We have had one offer so far but turned that one down (it was the very first offer). We have several people who are interested but can't put an offer in until they sell their house. So we are still waiting. Although it has only been on the market for less than a month.

We have purchased a new house. They will start building as soon as we except an offer on our house. then it will be 5- 6 months to completion. So, we are anxious to sell our house and get the new house under construction and also so we can stop having to keep our house in show ready condition, which is difficult with 2 dogs and 2 year old.

This past week Bill's Mom came to visit. We had a great time, especially Olivia, she loves her NaNa. We hope she will come down to visit more often.

Olivia and NaNa

Olivia wearing NaNa's headband to put on her makeup, just like NaNa does.

Pat Benatar?

Pretending to sleep on NaNa's air matress.

Helping NaNa plant flowers in the pots.

Before taking a nap and planting flowers we spent the morning at the NC Museum of Life and Science. This was the first time we had been there and we love it. I know we will visit often. We enjoyed it more than the NC Zoo. Olivia had a blast. This is one of the Lemurs at the Museum. They were pretty cool.

I loved how they sat on their butt with their legs straight out and their ankles crossed.

Playing with NaNa in the sailboat section.

Mist to show how air moves around us.

Our friend the cow in the farmyard petting zoo.

If we went over to his stall and called him he would come right over to us. When I scratched his ear he would moo very softly. He really liked it. I was surprised that Olivia was not afraid.

We got to hold a butterfly at the butterfly exhibit. When we told Olivia we were going to see the butterflies she decided she would wear her butterfly dress.

Sidewalk chalk activities with NaNa

Opening her gift from NaNa's friend Donna. Thank you Donna. I can't wait to put the dress on her.

While I have been absent from posting we have had 5 blue bird eggs and five live blue bird babies. Olivia loves to check on the blue birds. Every day she wanted to see them. Every day I would pick her up to peer into the top of the bird house. I would say, "What do you see?" and she would tell me blue eggs. She asked where are the blue birds. We would tell her that they were not ready to hatch yet but very soon they would hatch. We new they were getting close to hatching. the very next day I lifted Olivia up to peer into the birdhouse again, and I would watch her face to see if by chance they had hatched, it's too high for me to see into. This day I new they had hatched because she looked in and immediately got this horrified look on her face, that quickly changed to a smile and she shouted "babies, Mommy!!!" It was a priceless moment!!! She was so excited that the babies had been born. I asked her how many and she said 2. So they must have hatched during the night and there were still 3 left to hatch. It was an awesome moment seeing her face as she got the first glimpse of her baby blue birds. They have now grown and left the nest. She had checked on them every day since they were born and watched the Mommy and Daddy bring food in and out of the house. Today she took the nest out of the house so that they can build another and have more babies. We usually get 2 sets of babies a year.

All five hatched.

Starting to get feathers.

Finally getting to hold them. She held it for a minute but when they moved she got nervous. Olivia loves animals. The only things she hates are bugs.

Eating at Old McDonald's as she calls it.

"Daddy you're silly"

What we've been up to

2009-04-26T22:17:00.004-04:00

Well, we have been busy, busy, busy. We have been working hard to get our house on the market. Planting flowers, spreading mulch, cleaning, etc. Not so easy to do with a 2 year old around. We managed to get everything done, (thanks Michael for helping with the 10 yards of mulch). The sign went up last Sunday and we have had 3 showings and one offer. We didn't take the offer because it was too low. They countered again but still too low. We have 2 other interests in it as well. We are going to hold out until we get the price we want. We don't have to move so if it doesn't sell for what we want we will just stay here. We are just trying to take advantage of the low interest rates to buy a bigger house. We are fortunate that we live in a great neighborhood and houses sell very well here. If it is meant to be we will get the right offer and find the perfect home to move to. We have two possibilities to purchase right now. We'll see what happens. It stinks trying to keep the house show ready with 2 dogs and a 2 year old. Hopefully it won't take too long.

Here are some random pictures. I haven't been taking too many lately. I am going to try and do better.

The mulch pile. Much more impressive in person.

Olivia helping to shovel the mulch.

Putting mulch around the plants.

Michael's banana split birthday cake. Olivia stole about six cherries off the top when she thought no one was looking.

"I wasn't doing anything."

Olivia loves to read books. She remembers everything you read to her and she can recite the story back to you word for word. She amazes me with how smart she is.

She is growing up so fast. I enjoy her so much. I can't believe how much I love this little girl. I am so blessed beyond my wildest dreams.

Happy Easter!!!

2009-04-12T22:42:00.004-04:00

We hope everyone enjoyed Easter Sunday!! Olivia had a great time. She talked all week about the Easter Bunny, hippity hopping to bring her presents. What a difference a year makes. Last year she wasn't interested in any of it. This year she colored eggs, had two Easter egg hunts, and loved that the Easter Bunny left her a basket of goodies. She was also pretty excited that not only did he come to her house but he also went to Aunt Debbie's and left her goodies there too. She received a lot of great presents from everyone, I mean from the Easter Bunny.

Coloring Eggs.

She wrote an "O" for Olivia on one of the eggs before dying it.

The one on the front left is Bill's Miami Dolphin themed egg. He couldn't leave it in the colors long enough because Olivia wanted both those colors for herself. She did not understand how important it was to Daddy to pay tribute to his favorite team.

Fingers get dyed too.

I found my basket!!

Straight to the candy first.

This girl loves Tic Tacs.

"Mmmmmmmmmmmm!! Can I have some now!"

Not a chance we have to go to church. I can't imagine her in church after eating that.

Easter Sunday! She doesn't like her picture taken so it's hard to get a decent one.

Her cousins. Her favorite.

Zoo Trip

2009-04-05T21:38:00.005-04:00

Saturday was a beautiful day here in North Carolina. It was the perfect day to head to the zoo with our friends, Andrea, Mike, Madi, Dori, Dave, Annalise and DJ. We had a great time with everyone and hope we can get together again soon.

Here are a few pictures that we took. Unfortunately we didn't get many pictures but you can check out Andrea's blog and Dori's Blog for more pictures.

Three beautiful little girls..........Madi Belle, Olivia, and Annalise

Thanks for a fun day everyone!! We look forward to our next outing together.

2009-03-29T21:59:00.005-04:00

It was a beautiful day today, of course I couldn't get any decent pictures of Olivia. At least I got one considering she put my camera in the bathtub. It's a miracle that it can take a picture at all.

This girl loves to run around in the rain. Today is the first day we haven't had rain.

I finally got her comforter for her big girl bed. I didn't want to do the entire room over again, I got lucky and found this Nautica set that matches the chocolate and pink perfectly. I just need the sheets to match and the flower accessory pillow to complete the look.

Her new picture board for her room. I have more pictures to print off and post up there. Her foster family and her Daddy are the only ones that made it so far.

Olivia rotates her friends. She makes sure that everyone gets a chance to be in bed with her. She is so caring even with her stuffed animals.

This is for you Mama Mildred and Papa Raul

2009-03-28T09:09:00.004-04:00

Finally, finally, finally, I was able to get this short video to upload. I don't know why I have so much trouble uploading videos. Oh, well. Better late than never.

Gifts from Guatemala

2009-03-22T22:35:00.002-04:00

Well this post is well overdue, but between the 3 of us one of us has been sick at some point over the last month. Everyone here is finally on the mend so I wanted to get this post done before any more time passes.

We are very fortunate that Olivia had the most wonderful foster family in Guatemala. They love her so much and miss her every day. Several weeks ago Bill's friend was heading to Guatemala for a vacation and he offered to transport a package for us. I put together a framed photo of Olivia, some of her artwork from school, some snapshots of her, a handwritten "letter" from Olivia, and a DVD of her playing and talking so they could see her and hear her voice. They loved everything. They were so excited to have something of Olivia's. Seeing her and hearing her voice was the best. They said that the first day they got the package they watched the "Olivia Show" 4 times. My how the tables have turned..........................I remember well when Olivia was still in Guatemala..........................How hard it was to not see her, hold her, kiss her, etc........................how we wondered every day what she was doing, and what she sounded like, how big was she, etc. I remember well how hard it was to wait for the updates each month and to see how she changed and hear about the new things she was doing. Monthly updates was the extent of our contact back then............. Now of course they can follow along with the blog and we can send e-mails back and forth. They will always be a part of of our family and us a part of theirs.

Thank you so much for the beautiful dress and accessories for Olivia and thank you so much for the awesome Guatemala t-shirts!!!!! We love them.

Olivia opening her gift.

An outfit fit for a princess.

Her foster brothers sent her a heart shaped lollipop. She loves it. She is still eating it. Everyday she asks for it, sucks on it for a little while and then gives it back and says "save it for tomorrow".

Doesn't she look beautiful in her new dress and hair bow! (She wouldn't model her purse)

Catching Up

2009-03-04T22:58:00.006-05:00

I am behind on posting so I will try and catch up quickly.

On Saturday we had a great time on our play date with Bella, and her Mom and Dad (Heather and Tom). We went to Monkey Joe's and then to dinner. The girls had a lot of fun even though it took Olivia a little while to get up the courage to actually get down and play. Once she did she loved it. She and Bella went down the big slide and were not scared one bit. The Moms went down the big slide as well and it was actually fun. We had a great time at dinner. Olivia and Bella are so cute together they are each other's best friend.

It rained Saturday and Sunday so we only did indoor activities. Olivia went to her first movie in a theater. She did great and loved seeing Hotel for Dogs. She looked so tiny in the chairs. It was funny to see her sitting there eating her popcorn and drinking bottled water. She is growing up too fast.

We woke up Monday morning to snow and freezing cold weather. Olivia and I got to spend the day together.

Tuesday she started full time in her new classroom and did wonderful. She stopped by her old classroom to say Hi to the teachers and check out the new kids then off she went to her new class. Today Bill had to pick her up early because she woke up from nap with really gunky red eyes. Off to the doctor they went and she has pink eye in both eyes. Her eyes look awful but she doesn't complain at all. She let us clean her eyes with a warm wash cloth and then she tilts her head back and lets us put the drops in, I had envisioned that we would be holding her down and trying desperately to get some bit of a drop in them but it's just the opposite. She amazes me. She will be out of school tomorrow but can return on Friday. I am not sure if she got the infection from a sinus infection (this is what the doctor thinks caused it), or Monkey Joe's. I shutter to think what all she was exposed to at Monkey Joe's (remember it was a rainy day so there were A LOT of people there).

Well, that just about covers everything up to today. I wonder what tomorrow has in store for us. We are looking forward to receiving a package from our foster family in Guatemala. A friend of Bill's went to Guatemala last week on a fishing excursion and offered to take a package to our foster family. They in turn gave him a package to bring back to Olivia. He should arrive back in the states tomorrow and we should have the package by the weekend. We are so blessed to have had such a wonderful foster family who still loves Olivia as though she were there own. We look forward to seeing them again one day.

Enjoy the rest of your week.

Coming down the big slide

"Would someone please bring me a chilled Capri Sun?"

This is our second round of snow this winter, I was over it after the first round. When is spring coming.

Olivia watching the coming attractions at her first movie in a theater.

Mr. Potato head

2009-02-28T08:45:00.006-05:00

Building Mr. Potato Head

Ta Da.....doesn't he look wonderful!

"Do you think this hat is too small on me?"

"Awww...Don't cry Mr. Potato Head!"

Singing "Rock a Bye Baby" to Mr. PH

Faceless once again.

Pictures of Olivia

2009-02-20T19:48:00.004-05:00

Dancing to Choo Choo Soul.

Olivia is moving up to the next class so I will have to burn another copy of Choo Choo Soul for her new class. The kids love it and her current teachers aren't giving up their copy for anything.

Sporting her new backpack a Valentine gift from Aunt Debbie and Uncle Mike.

Too cool to smile.

Strike a pose.

"When are all the birds coming back,Mommy?"

Wearing her Creation by LouLou and her Valentine from Daddy a gold Dora necklace.

I had to cut me out of this one it was awful.

Opening her Valentine gifts from Grammie.

Helping Mommy give the dogs a bath. She is a great helper.

Awww!

Sitting in her baby doll stroller. Olivia is smaller than you think.

Olivia says "this is my Maggie"

Extra Cheese

Random Cuteness

2009-02-09T21:30:00.004-05:00

Olivia and her best friend Bella. Bella turned 2 on Friday. According to the teachers Bella can say Olivia better than Olivia can, but Bella has nicknamed Olivia "Lela" and that is what she calls her all the time. Too cute.

The kids have a thing with climbing and laying down on this shelf in the class room. Last week Bella was on the shelf.

Crazy Dog

Crazy Kid

She's Only 2 years old?

2009-02-02T21:33:00.002-05:00

Olivia amazes us with how smart she is and how observant she is of everything and everyone around her. She says some of the funniest things, things that I would not expect a child her age to say or know. Here is the conversation she had with her Daddy on Sunday.......

Olivia: "Bill, pay play dough wit me, Bill?"
Bill: "What did you say, Olivia?
Olivia: "Pay play dough wit me, Bill.....pease?"
Bill: "Olivia you don't call me Bill, honey. I'm Daddy."
Olivia: "Morgan and Madison call you Bill."
Bill: proceeds to explain to his 2 year old, which he is amazed even noticed what anyone called him."yes that's right Morgan and Madison call me Uncle Bill because I am their Uncle. Just like you call Mike, Uncle Mike, because he is your Uncle, but I am your Daddy so you call me Daddy not Bill.
Olivia: "Mommy call you Bill."
Bill: "yes Mommy calls me Bill but you need to call me Daddy because I am your Daddy. Other people will call me Bill because I am not their Daddy but I am your Daddy so you will always call me Daddy. Okay?"
Olivia: "Okay Daddy."

She is going to give us a run for our money when she becomes a teenager.

Olivia's 2nd Birthday Party!

2009-01-26T19:21:00.007-05:00

Olivia had a great time at her birthday party on Saturday!! It was just family this year. Bill made a great dinner from Giada's cookbook. And my sister made the cake. Olivia loved her cake. She doesn't quite know what to think about everyone singing Happy Birthday to her. Even at school she was looking at everyone like they had lost their minds when they all started singing to her.

Olivia's princess castle cake. My sister did an awesome job on it. Thank you Aunt Debbie!!

Opening presents was her favorite part besides eating cake.

She got very excited over all her gifts especially the clothes. I think I take her clothes shopping way too often.

Dancing to "Jump" on Choo Choo Soul.

Testing her new step stool. Check out her custom made skirt by "Creations by Lou Lou" too cute, especially with her fancy silk blouse.

My favorite girls.

Best friends.

My baby at 10 months old.

Where did my baby go? You are growing way to fast! We love you so much and thank God every day for sending you to us!! Happy Birthday Princess!