One of the coolest things ever

Is this not the coolest bike you've ever seen? Check out the link at the bottom of my blog for a chance to win one of these babies. They're giving one away every Wednesday!

I love these guys

These guys make me so, so happy. That's about all I can say. I love my Family!!!!

She knows!

This morning, after I helped Ella open the back door so that she could let Bjorn out, she said something that made my day!!!!

"Mommy, I love you. You are always doing everything to help me everyday."

O' Ella. You are so sweet. And right.

Ella's day!!

Today is what we called "Ella's day." With so much going on with Luke recently, starting Kindergarten and soccer, today was just what Ella needed. And boy was she excited. I haven't seen her this cheerful and happy for a while, which is saying something because she's a pretty happy girl. It looked like she was about to jump out of her skin each time we mentioned school.

She has one of the sweetest teachers I have ever seen. Miss Stacey is going to be well loved by this little girl, Ella already talks about how much she cant wait to hug her teacher and how they are best friends.

As we walked up the driveway a friend, whom she didnt know, was getting out of his car. Ella asked us to stop and wait so that she could say hello to her new friend. I love how outgoing and social she is.



This last picture is blurred but I had to show it. I said, "Who's ready to start School?" And as Ella raised her hand Olivia did the same. It show how much Liv idolizes her big Sister. Man, I love having girls!!!

11 months

Really, we're here again?

This month has been a blur. What with our California vacation, school starting for everyone, Dad getting ready to start teaching and the regular old trips to the Park, pool, dog park... man it was a quick month for us all.



Olivia, you have really started to blossom. This month you have gone from our worst sleeper to our best, napping around 4 or 5 hours a day and 11 to 12 hours a night. Sometimes I feel like I hardly get to see you. You are funnier and sillier than ever. You have started doing some pretty rad dance moves, shaking every part of your body that you can. You can stand for a while now but are cautious enough to hold back on any wobbly steps. You have added many words to your ever-growing vocabulary and though I dont think you'll pass Ella at 50 words by your 1st birthday, I think we have another talker on our hands.



Your favorite things this month have ben eating as much big-people food as possible and your blanket. Did I mention you love food?! You are frequently heard saying "num num" all through the house until we sit you in your highchair for a snack. Your favorite is pancakes and waffles. A breakfast lover like your Mommy.

You become more and more social every day. You went through a bit of a shy stage at the start of the Summer but have really started to love socializing with whom ever you meet. As long as your Momma or Dadda are close by you love to flirt and smile at whom ever will give you attention (and thats just about everyone)

I love you more today than ever before, but I find myself thinking that every single day. You bring laughter and happiness to our Family like I never imagined. We are the luckiest Parents in the World!!! How so much personality got into such a tiny body I will never know.


O' and as of Sunday you were finally able to wear your very first 6-12 month outfit!!! I new all that sleeping would bring about some growing.

I love you Olivia,Liv, Livvers, Liva, Olive. You make me get all giddy just thinking about you.

Stuck in the Middle

Ella is a middle child. She has a hard time deciding whether or not she wants to be big or little. And most days have a little of both rolled in. She is not the oldest, who gets to do everything first and receives the attention for doing so. Everything Luke does is new and exciting. By the time Ella does them I can sense that we just dont quite have the same enthusiasm as we did the first time around. Ella is not the youngest, who gets attention for being little and sweet and cute. Every time Olivia does something she gets ooooh's and aaaah's . And frequently Ella will try to do something similar but a 3 1/2 year old bopping her head to some fun music is just not the same as a 10 month old doing it.

I can tell that this little girl feels stuck. I can sense that she's trying to figure out who she is and what she wants to be doing. She's lost somewhere between a Kindergartner and a baby and I feel like I am overlooking her among the excitement of those 2 things.

So what do I do? How can I help her to know how important she is to us all? She makes us better and brighter and more exciting. She has a role all her own and I dont want her to feel lost in the middle, trying to fit into some one else's shoes.

I love you sweet Ella. I know sometimes things feel frustrating and confusing. I know you want more attention than you can manage to get. But I hope you always know how wonderful and beautiful and fun and thoughtful you are. I can not even begin to tell you how you can put smiles on my face in ways no body else ever could.



Ella with one of her favorite people, also a middle child, Uncle Ryan. I love this picture because its so clear how much they love each other.

Liv's "B"

Olivia got this "B" (as we call them) from my close friend, Ashley. She brought it over the eve of her surgery to bring Olivia comfort on such a long, hard day. And comfort her it did, and has done ever since. I had the nerve to lie her down with something else tonight as her "B' needed to be cleaned. Man, she was mad at me. I finally walked in with the dirty blanket that she was crying for. This is what she looked like when I put it in her crib with her. I guess I will need to wash it between naps tomorrow.

Thank you Ashley for giving us such a wonderful gift, it will be loved for years to come!