Oklahoma Bound

Well, on Friday morning we will be off to Oklahoma to visit Steve's family and friends. We are flying this time because we have frequent flyer miles to use but the bad thing is Steve is flying one airline and Olivia and I are flying a different one. ARRRGGH! It's only an hour and a half flight so maybe it won't be too bad and if Olivia is hard to handle on the way there, Steve may fly with her on the way home. She has to sit on my lap because she's free and the thing is I don't have much of a lap these days with the baby sticking way out there so this should be interesting. Anyway, Olivia is going to be in her first parade on Saturday. The church Steve's parents attend participates in this parade and they want us to come along. She will be dressed in her jean skirt, red shirt, and her new red cowboy boots. I'm sure there will be pictures that I'll post later. So we will be in Oklahoma for 10 days and I will try and blog a few times while there but we'll see. If not, you'll know why.

Oh, one funny thing. Olivia has seen Dora the Explorer, a cartoon on t.v., a few times. I didn't realize that she learned a song on there but she goes around singing, "Bak pa, bak pa" a lot because one song they sing is Back Pack, Back Pack. Well, when we were in K-Mart the other day she started singing that song and I wondered why she started singing it. I looked over and Dora was on a lawn chair. I couldn't believe the my 17 month old daughted recognized Dora and started singing that song, especially because she has only seen it a few times. I guess kids are smarter than I thought at that age. I just thought it was cute.

2nd Annual Childbirth Class Reunion

While pregnant with Olivia, we attended a 12 week, 1 night a week, 2 hour each night Bradley Childbirth Course with 8 other couples. We wanted to meet the babies after they were born so last September we hosted the 1st Childbirth Class Reunion. On Saturday, Steve and I hosted our 2nd Annual Childbirth Class Reunion because now the kids are toddlers and are walking, talking, and so adorable to watch interact with each other. 3 couples and their kids, including us, plus 2 moms without their husbands spent the afternoon BBQ-ing and visiting while the kids played. The picture here of the kids alone, are from left to right: Jonathan, Austin, Olivia, Fallon, and Haven. Don't they look excited? Olivia was born first out of these 5 but 3rd out of the rest of the babies who could not attend. She was born mid-January. Next came Fallon at the end of January, Austin mid-February, Haven last part of February, followed by Jonathan 2 days later. The next picture was taken at the 1st reunion and the baby on the left, Haley, was not here this year, but you can see that left to right, Austin, Olivia and Haven have changed since last year. The next picture is of all the mommies, daddies, and babies who could make it. We had a great time of food, fun, and fellowship. The very last picture is of three of us who are already pregnant again with our 2nd babies. I am due first at the end of August, then Lauren the one in the middle is due next at the beginning of September, and then Kendra on the left is due mid-October. We didn't waste any time did we?

Happy Father's Day!

We spent Father's Day with my parents and my brother Mike. My mom and I first served our hubbies breakfast in bed with a Cinnabon and coffee. Well, my dad wasn't in bed because he was already up so he ate on the couch and I made Steve go back to bed and wait. Serving breakfast in bed was my mom's idea to do for my dad but I stole it from her and did it also. Then off to church we went. After church we had a great meal at P.F. Chang's Chinese Bistro. Yum yum!! Then we ventured to the mountains up to Evergreen, CO to look at some land for sale that my brother wanted to check out. What a beautiful drive and what an incredible place it would be to live. The roads were a little curvy for me at times but the scenery was awesome. Now we are about ready to have some ice cream from Cold Stone Creamery. What a fun day! I think the dads really enjoyed it.

My mom has been here since last Saturday and my dad arrived last Tuesday. Olivia and I went with them to a family church camp near Divide, CO about 30 miles west of Colorado Springs. We were there Thursday through Saturday. It was a lot of fun but a little chilly. I took Olivia swimming to an indoor pool but she hasn't been in a pool since last summer so she was a little hesitant at first. O.K. very hesitant. She clung to me like glue. She finally calmed down and sat with me on the steps of the pool and just splashed.
Earlier this week I went to lunch with some friends from Rock Springs where I grew up. Debbie and Missy came down to Denver for one day with their hubbies. While their husbands were at a seminar or classes for work, Debbie, Missy, and I along with Vicki, who also grew up in Rock Springs but now lives 30 minutes from me, all went to lunch. It was so nice to see them and catch up on our lives and our kids. Missy has a son with Cystic Fibrosis and a rare bone disease so we shared stories of our daily so called treatments that we have to administer to our children. Even though our kids have different diseases we still have similarities as far as what we have to do daily to keep our children alive. Different treatments but still it sets us apart from what a family without these diseases has to do. If you think about it please pray for Missy's son Josh and my baby Olivia. Josh is 8 years old and struggles with his disease and that he can't do everything that other kids can. I know Olivia will someday have days like this where she will get frustrated with her disease too. Please also pray for their parents, Missy and Brian, and Steve and I because we have good and bad days too. It's hard to watch your children go through these trials and we just pray it makes them and us stronger, and it will because God promises us that.
The first pictures here are from Father's Day. The pic of Steve, Olivia, and I is our family sandwich. We tell Olivia "Family Sandwich" and she hugs us both and we all say "Ohhhhh!" It's so funny! I showed her the picture on my digital camera and said, "Look, family sandwich!" and then she said "Ohhhh!" and hugged the camera like she was hugging us, it cracked me up. One of the pics is of Olivia and my cousin's daughter Katie holding hands on a walk at family camp. Olivia just started holding hands with people. The last pic I couldn't resist, we had her hair in pigtails on top of her head and when we took the rubber bands out this is how she looked, very silly. Well, that's all for now. My parents leave tomorrow and I need to catch up on tasks at home. Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there.

12 weeks and Counting

This past Monday I was 28 weeks along or 7 months, that leaves 12 weeks plus or minus before this baby is here. I cannot believe how fast this pregnancy has gone. It's a blur almost. With Olivia I felt like 9 months was like years but I guess because I am so busy with her I don't have as much time to think about it. Am I ready for the arrival of baby numero dos? NO! I mean I am excited to meet her but I have so much to do before then. Our summer is very busy so that leaves me little time to prepare. Oh well, isn't that how it always goes.
Now on to little Olivia. I don't know what it is lately but I am just loving every moment with my daughter. I guess I did before too but this is different. She has such a cute and funny personality and she is talking so much and copying everything we say. She amazes me. Lately I have been wanting time to stop so I can just enjoy this very fun age forever. She is so cuddly and loves to give Steve and I lots of hugs and kisses. We do family sandwiches where Steve and I hug with her in the middle of us. She loves it. She will copy us when we say, "Love You" but she says "La Lu" which sounds like love you sort of. I'm bragging I know, but those of you who have had a 16 month old know what I'm talking about. Anyway, that's all for now. Have a good weekend!

Jam Packed Saturday

Phew-wee! I'm exhausted. Saturday was a go go go day for us. It all started at 6:00 a.m. when the alarm clock went off. I had stayed up the night before watching a movie with Steve and my brother and didn't go to bed until 12:30 a.m. Anyway, we got ready and took Olivia to her babysitter Shannon's house, who lives 30-40 minutes away, so Steve and I could go to the opposite side of town for a Diabetes Seminar from 9-12. Great seminar by the way, we learned a lot and want Olivia to be put on a pump a.s.a.p. Then on to Subway for a quick lunch and then I had a hair appointment at 1:30 p.m. While at my haircut Steve ran some errands we needed done then he picked me up and we went to a graduation party at 3:00 p.m. where we met Olivia's babysitter who also was going to the party. We stayed until 4:00 then drove for an hour to Conifer, CO up in the mountains to have dinner at our friends who live up there. We visited, ate, played games, visited some more and ended up getting home at midnight. The drive home was painful because we were both exhausted and could barely stay awake. Boy, my bed never looked so good when we got home. It was a long, hard, fun day but I don't recommend jamming so many events into one day. It wore me out and I could barely function today but I got some much needed rest and am ready for the week.