1st Pumpkin of the season

One of our neighbors had an abundance of pumpkins in their backyard so they invited the families with kids over to pick some of them tonight. Olivia proved to be quite the little girl and would cringe (sometimes scrunching up her face) any time the pumpkin got near her! It was hilarious!

Look at her hand - she's so grossed out!

Ken Rome 5K on Saturday

On Saturday morning, Duane ran in the Ken Rome 5K and Olivia and I walked it. We were supposed to go to Liv's first swim lesson that morning, too, but couldn't make it in time. They started the 5K about 15 mintues later than we expected so time just ran out on us. Duane enjoyed his run but my walk wasn't as fun - at mile 2 I got a flat tire on the jogging stroller.

Olivia started out strong....

but crashed a little after mile 2!

Yum...Punch pizza!!!

Tonight we went to Punch Pizza on Grand Avenue and someone LOVED it so much she ate her entire pizza (minus the crust)!!! This picture makes us laugh because she looks kind of chunky and has grease smeared all over her face and in her hair!

Look at this photo - I am in love!!!

Sneak peek - courtesy of Fishtale Photography

Olivia's birthday weekend

What an amazing weekend we had! Olivia's 1st birthday couldn't have been more perfect. I took a vacation day on Friday and Olivia and I picked up my parents around 10:30am. We headed straight to IKEA and walked around - we also had lunch there. While we were there, my parents picked up a toy chest for Olivia for her birthday. After the chaos of IKEA, we ran some errands and Olivia and Grandpa napped in the car!

Friday night we went out to dinner and then came back to our house for cake, ice cream and presents! Olivia loved the hanging decorations I put up and the balloons. All weekend long she was doing the sign for "dog," which is wagging your tongue - it was hilarious! Anyway, Olivia was a little apprehensive of her cake but after Duane put a little icing on her lip and she licked it off, she loved it! She picked the cake apart with one finger but managed to eat plenty of it. We opened up presents and cards and Olivia is one lucky girl! From us she got a growth chart and 2 pairs of shoes; clothes and a toy chest from Grandma and Grandpa Potter, money and a card from Alex & Giesla and a Fridge Farm from our friends Joel and Allison. She also received cards from Alex & Giesla, Great-Uncle and Aunt Ken and Jan and Great-Grandpa Kraus.

The damage to the cake

Olivia's growth chart...she doesn't seem as excited about it as I was...

Saturday's weather wasn't the best so we spent most of the day inside. Duane and my dad did winterize the boat so that was a huge relief for Duane. We had Jaron and Crystal over for dinner and re-celebrated Olivia's birthday. After dinner, the adults sat outside around our mini-fire pit.

Sunday's weather was even worse than Saturday so the ladies went shopping and Duane and my dad relaxed at our house.

Olivia's toy chest

Today was a sad day - I dropped my parents off at the airport and Olivia had to go back to daycare. The worst part - she had her 1year check up and shots at the end of the day. She is doing great (20lbs, 10oz., 28.5") but was not doing well tonight after those shots! :(

Birthday party #1

Since Olivia will not be in daycare tomorrow on her actual birthday, she had her birthday party today! Around snack time, Duane and I went over to her room and gave the kids a snack to celebrate Liv's 1st birthday. We brought yogurt melts for the kids and Olivia wore a little hat to make her feel special. It was so cute! She looked like such a big girl sitting at the table with the other kids!

The sign on Liv's room - check out the pink eye notice also on the door....awesome!

She's not sure what to think of the hat....

Such a big girl at the table!

A year ago today....

As Olivia's 1st birthday approaches, I find myself thinking back to what I was doing a year ago from now. About a year ago, my friend Noelle was taking my maternity pictures. I was looking at these photos the other day and feel like I have to post one and reminisce. Call me crazy, but sometimes I really miss being pregnant with Olivia! I had a really easy pregnancy and felt great the whole time. Anyway - check out this belly!

As each day goes by and we quickly approach September 16, I am becoming an emotional mess! This week will be "weaning week" and I'm emotional about that, too. I've made it an entire year with nursing and have really enjoyed it. If anyone asked me, I could honestly tell them it's been by far the easiest part of being a new mother. Plus, I could still eat and eat like I was pregnant because my body needed the calories. After this week, I can't eat like that anymore - yikes! Good thing I'll have cake to pig out on this weekend! Stay tuned for updates from the birthday girl!

Another weekend, another update!

This weekend was bittersweet - we seemed to have fun with all we did but poor Olivia was suffering yet another double ear infection! This is #6, in case anyone is keeping count... Yesterday we went to urgent care, ran some errands and tried to go for a bike ride. Liv was pretty tired and wasn't really thrilled with that decision, though.

Today we went for a walk at Minnehaha Falls and hung around the house the rest of the day. I hope everyone had a nice weekend!

Is it September already?!

Hello everyone - sorry for the long hiatus! I wish I knew what's kept me away for so long but as I type this, it's hard to remember what we've been up to since the last post. Labor Day weekend was nice. Saturday we ran a bunch of errands and Sunday we had a combo 1st/30th birthday party. On Sunday we met with some friends and went bike riding and grilled some brats. Here are some new photos!

Strainer/Hat