Catching up with Livie Lou

Olivia is almost two years old. I can't wait to bring her back to the northwest so you can all finally meet this sweet little person. She is spunky and chatty. She has more words than I can count. Her enunciation isn't perfect but she continues to amaze us with all the sentences she spouts. I absolutely love the toddler years. Here are a few recent pictures of our Livie Lou.

Playing with sidewalk chalk occupies much of her time these days.

Liv loves Max. And Max loves Liv.

Seriously, is there anything cuter than a girl in a tutu?

Perhaps, a girl in pigtails?

Saturday Morning Update

It's Saturday morning and I'm watching the kids chase each other around. I realize that I have been terrible about blogging. Somehow life has been moving more quickly even though it doesn't seem like we have that much going on. Gavin and Olivia are growing up faster than I'd like. I love seeing them accomplish new milestones but it's a little sad watching the shadows of their babyhood fade away.

Gavin is loving school and has been learning to write. He tells us about how some words end the same and rhyme. He has also started doing yoga. He shows us his tree pose and his balancing skills. Apparently his speech is a little delayed compared to some of the other kids but I'm sure that will work itself out. We're most impressed with how kind he is proving to be. His teachers continue to praise how he handles conflict with the other kids. He is polite and a genuinely nice boy. It's much easier to work on speech, if you ask me.

Olivia is almost 20 months old, a fact that completely baffles me. She is a funny girl, our little miss thang. She struts around the house with her own little swagger, arms swinging and booty shaking. Liv loves her accessories and her baby dolls. My parents got her a little doll for Christmas that might as well have been her only present because she is obsessed with "baby." She is really starting to talk a lot. The other day I coughed, and she said, "You, ok?" It's fun being able to communicate with her.

Adam has only four months of residency training left before graduation. He is starting to look for a job in the Seattle area. He has a few prospects, so we're hopeful that something will come to fruition. I truly thought I'd be counting down the days until we moved back but I'm actually going to really miss living on the east coast. There are still a lot of places I'd like to see. We'll try to get to as many as we can over the next few months. I've actually started compiling a list of places I'd like to see in Washington State. There are a lot of cool parks in the Pacific Northwest!

Anyhow, that is what's happening with us. Here are few updated photos of the kids. Miss you!

 

 

The Day to Day

Hello. Sometimes I forget to just check in and write about our day-to-day stuff. Things are going well this month. Gavin is loving school and has made lots of friends. He even has a girlfriend! Yet, her name changes nearly everyday so I'm not sure how serious things are. One day it's Lyla; the next day it's Angeline. He seems to get along with everyone and has such a joyful demeanor. His teachers told me that they think the world would be a much better place if everyone got to spend one hour with Gavin. I can't think of a better compliment than that. Of course, he saves some of his less pleasant behavior for after school.

Gavin is challenging our patience with back talk and not listening. Communicating with a four year old can be difficult. Many of our conversations go like this, "Gavin, you're not acting nice." "No, you're not acting nice." "Gavin, you need to say you're sorry to Olivia." "No, you need to say you're sorry." It can quickly develop into a downward spiral from there. Before I know it, I'm the one acting like a four year old. The worst part is when I just want to laugh but can't because I'm trying to be a good parent. I'm going to try a new method of dealing with this behavior. I feel like I'd be best to redirect his attention to something else and then later bring up why he needs to talk nicer or why he made me upset. These in the moment behavioral corrections are not working. We'll see... it's funny how many different articles are out there on the best form of discipline. Everyone has a theory and they pretty much all conflict. What I do know is that it's all normal and pretty much annoying! As the saying goes, it's a good thing kids are cute!

Speaking of cute, Olivia is sure coming out of her shell. She held back for quite a long time but now she's laughing and being silly. I don't know if it's just having more experience but she seems to be such an easy toddler. She is just happy! Of course, she absolutely destroys our house. That girl makes more messes than Gavin ever did. She is like pig pen- she makes a mess in one room and then moves on to the next before I've even gotten the first mess cleaned up. Such a trouble maker! Probably the cutest thing she has been doing lately is giving fist bumps. She gives a pound and says, "boom!" Crazy cute.

Adam has been busy. In October, he spent a week in Ecuador on a medical mission. I've asked him to write a blog post about it, so stay tuned. He also had to give an hour-long presentation at what they call grand rounds. It was in front of his whole department- 100+ people. Better him than me! I hate stuff like that. Anyhow, now that he's got that out of the way, he's working on finding a job in the Seattle area. He's got quite a few leads and is starting to send out resumes and explore opportunities. He's counting down the days to graduation. If all goes well, we'll be back in the northwest by early-to-mid summer.

I'm working on getting our house ready to put on the market. It's all tiny detail work. I'm freshening up paint and clearing out clutter. I'm not sure what to expect with the market but I'll do my best to make this house show as well as possible. This is a great house but it has plenty of old-home quirks. I look forward to having our next home be permanent. It gets exhausting working on a house, knowing that we're just going to move. I am going to miss this house quite a lot.

Well, that's all that's going on back here. Now, I better clean up all of Olivia's messes while she is napping or she won't have anything to do when she wakes up! :)

Halloween Superheroes

Let me introduce to you the kids that keep our house safe from all things bad and evil:

 Captain Dangerous

 And his sidekick...

The Evil Genius

For Halloween, I decided to make capes for the kids because of Gavin's recent interest in superheroes. I found a pattern on Etsy and managed to do a pretty decent job making them! I am still very green when it comes to sewing and I didn't realize how hard it is to work with stretchy knit fabrics. But, I managed to get them done well before Halloween. It was pretty easy to put together the rest of their costumes, just needed a few accessories. Although Gavin loved his cape, he was a little bummed that he wasn't going to be Batman. Adam and I loved their originality but I've decided that next year I will just let him be whoever he wants. The last thing I want is a guilt trip when he's all grownup. It amazes me how much stuff like this can come back twenty years later!!! 

Halloween night was a lot of fun. We weren't sure what Olivia would think. We thought she'd be too little to enjoy trick-or-treating. Boy, were we wrong! She strutted along from house to house, dragging her little pumpkin. Her walk is just too funny. We've taken to calling her "little miss thang." Everyone got a kick out of her "evil genius" cape. Gavin told everyone that he was Captain Dangerous and that he had a danger button. So, even though he wasn't the awesome Batman, he did own his character very well! 

The best part of the superhero costume is that they will keep playing with them. I love watching them chase each other around the house, capes flying behind them. It was fun making them and I can't help thinking that I'm a pretty kick-ass mom! (Hey, there can be a lot of self-doubt or guilt as a parent, so you have to celebrate your successes!) Here are just a few more pics:

Catching up with Olivia

It's been a while since we chatted about Olivia. Liv is now 14 months old and becoming such a big girl! Over the last two months, she has started walking and talking! The walking was sort of a funny thing. She could do it right after she turned one year old, but was very hesitant. She would take a couple of steps and then immediately resume crawling. This went on for about a month. At 13 months, she started to go for it. Now, she's all over the place! We laugh because she has a drunken Charlie Chaplin style of walk- very much a toddler. I've included a video for your viewing pleasure.

Around the same time that she started walking, Livie started to talk! It completely took me by surprise one night when she handed me her plate after dinner and said, "all done!" It was so awesome! Then, about a week later, Adam was out playing basketball with Gavin and he was dribbling the ball with Liv. She bounced it a few times and said, "I did it!" Since then, she's said lots of other words, including keys, baby, hi, and bye bye. She loves to say, "I got it!" After I wipe her runny nose, she says, "That's better." It's just so crazy to me! Gavin didn't start talking until much, much later. I'm not sure if it's the girl thing or the sibling thing. Probably a bit of both. 

Anyhow, that's what's new with our little gal. She is such a sweet girl. She's feisty and a bit of a diva. But, her baseline is just pure happiness. She gives us hugs, high fives, and perfect smiles. Here are a few pictures of Liv from the last couple of months.

Life with Olivia at 12 months

Olivia is one year old! We had a wonderful time celebrating her birthday in Montreal! Here is a birthday video to highlight her first year. Enjoy!

Life with Olivia at 11 months

Unbelievable, right? We are quickly approaching Liv's first birthday, in which these monthly updates will come to a close. Don't worry- she plays a major role in the story that is the deMars family- so it won't be the last you hear of her. Anyhow, I hope these updates have helped you feel like you know Olivia- she's truly a girl worth knowing.

I really should title this post- Little Miss Foodie. Livie loves food! All food! She only has the two bottom teeth, but she can gum away at just about anything you put in front of her. In fact, she's starting to get pissed off if her food is too pureed. She also gets pissed off if she sees you eating and you're not sharing! She seems to be a bottomless pit. She can eat an entire pear, then an entire banana- and still want more! It's truly remarkable. In the mornings, I used to scramble up 4 eggs for Gavin, Livie, and me. Now- I have to scramble 5 because Liv puts down as much food as me! Keep in mind, she weighs just a little over 20 pounds! It's pretty ridiculous.

In terms of milestones, she's still just crawling like a mad woman. She is starting to test the waters of standing alone, but basically just falls down and resumes crawling. Now that the weather is warm, we spend most of our days outside. She doesn't love the swimming pool, but I think she'll start to like it as the summer progresses. We spend the late afternoons out on a blanket, under the maple trees. It's relaxing and fun to watch the kids snuggle and play with their toys. Of course, due to her obsession with eating- I have to watch her closely, as she is willing to eat grass, rocks, and the like.

Not too much else to add this month- she continues to overwhelm us with her cuteness and sweet nature. Here are a few pics from the last month.

 

Ok, what're we eatin' here?

Life with Olivia at 10 months

 

Olivia is now a 10 month old, full of personality! I know that I say it again and again, but she is really such a joy to be around. She is just a complete sweetheart! Even when she is crying or being fussy, I melt when I hold her.

Livie still maintains her "evil genius" status, as she is a big troublemaker! We have to watch her closely because she is a speed crawler and seems to be drawn to whatever she shouldn't be into. That's most kids, though! Liv really gets a kick out of us catching her climbing stairs or getting into Max's water bowl. Her little grin is contagious.

Olivia is getting close to walking. She walks along the furniture but doesn't stand by herself yet. I am not sure if she is in much of a hurry, considering she gets around so easily with her mad crawling skills. She is now saying "Mama" and "Dada" pretty regularly, which is very sweet. She also waves "Hi" and I swear, she actually said "Hi" while waving once. The thing that cracks us up most is that Olivia nods her head in agreement. We are having a great time having conversations with her and getting her to nod. For example, "Livie, do you think the NBA playoffs are dragging on?" She will most definitely nod in agreement.

I have been making nearly all of her baby food, which I did not anticipate doing. It turns out that it is super easy and makes me feel great that I know what she is consuming. With the help of my Cuisenart food processor, I am whipping up all kinds of purees. My plan is to just ease out the pureeing, give her the same fruits and vegetables in a chunkier texture, and try to maintain a healthy palate into toddlerhood. I didn't do this with Gavin and am really struggling getting these foods into his diet. I'll keep you updated on this experiment.

Anyhow, things are good with Livie Lou. Obviously, we all adore her! Here are a few pictures from the past month. Enjoy!

A day at the park, Buckingham Lake

Trying to master the sippy cup- she much prefers you to just feed her a bottle... little diva!

At the tulip festival at Washington Park, Mother's Day 2011

This little face has cheered me up many times over the last week, and it will probably get her just about anything she wants out of life... at least from me!

Life with Olivia at 9 months

The title of this post should really be, "No, no, Livie..." The little gal is 9 months old and is all kinds of trouble! She started crawling a few weeks ago and is all over the place- very speedy! Not only that, she pulls herself up to standing, tries to climb the stairs, and like most kids, is drawn to anything that she shouldn't be into. It's been fun, though.

Here are her recent stats:

Weight: 19lbs, 8.8 oz (62nd percentile)

Height: 29 inches (89th percentile)

I made a little video with highlights from her 9th month. We love our little Livie Lou! Enjoy!

Kids

I've been meaning to write a post all week. It's not a lack of material that kept me from posting, as I have several little projects keeping me busy. Yet, it wasn't a lack of time that kept me away either. I just had a really fun week with Gavin and Olivia. We didn't do anything spectacular, mostly just played and cuddled. They're both at really fun ages. Olivia started crawling on Wednesday. She pulled herself up to kneeling on Thursday. On Friday, she started babbling, "Mama!" It's not exactly an official "Mama". Her favorite phrase is, "yayayayaya!" If you say it back to her, she repeats it again, and gets really excited. I finally got her to mimic "mamamamama!" That's my girl! I'm just completely in love with her.

Gavin has changed so much in the last few months- he's a kid now. His language skills seem to advance daily, but it's his logic and how he interprets emotions that continue to surprise me. He offers opinions and is actually pretty helpful. The other day, I was trying to find something and was ranting about, all worked up. He stopped me and said, "Mom, I'm going to give you a hug now. It's okay; you'll find it. Just keep looking." It was so sweet. I felt sort of ridiculous that my three year old basically called me out for throwing a tantrum! He says things all day long that just crack me up. When I scolded Max for doing something, Gavin said, "Mom, that is not very nice. Max is very, really friendly to me. He's my beagle and my buddy." Age 3 has its unpleasant moments, but overall, Gav is becoming a very good friend of mine.

Anyhow, that's about all I have to say tonight. My kids are awesome and this post is for them.

Life with Olivia at 8 months

Eight months have gone by since I first started writing about Livie Lou. She has been keeping us busy over the past month, as she's on the move! She quickly went from rolling to army crawling. Now she scoots herself all over the house. She hasn't figured out the coordination with moving her knees and arms, so she uses her upper body to pull herself around. It's funny how different kids are- Gavin was so hefty that he couldn't lift himself up like that. I don't think Gavin was really crawling until 11 months or so. Olivia has had a fire in her eyes from day one. She is ambitious and seems to feel that rest is overrated. I keep seeing pictures of friends with their newborns. They are all enjoying that really cuddly stage when babies just lay on your chest and snooze. Olivia has never done that! From the get-go, she was quickly nicknamed Little Miss Squirmy by our friends. We are convinced that she is going to be some kind of gymnast. I am a little scared for when she officially moves to crawling- she's going to be speedy!

Olivia is finally sleeping through most of the night. I'm no longer exhausted during the day. There were several months that were just so brutal, I barely remember them. Now, with rested eyes, I love to watch Olivia discovering the world. I know I have said this before, but she is really sweet natured. She is so happy and smiley. Speaking of smiles, she now has two bottom teeth and a third bottom tooth is cutting through. I have yet to capture her new grin on camera, but will post pictures once I do. It's funny because Adam has accused me of "calling tooth" for several months. I just kept assuming that she was teething and that is why she was up all night. Who wants to admit that their baby is really just insane?!? Anyhow, she really is teething now, and oddly enough, she seems calmer. 

Here are a few photos. Enjoy!

Life with Olivia at 7 months

Little miss is 7 months old now. Her hair is beginning to come in and we're debating whether she'll be blonde or brunette. We still can't tell what color eyes she has- they are very dark. Sometimes they look green and other times they look blue. Olivia is getting so big and is chattering like crazy. We have taken to calling her our evil genius. She has a way of causing trouble. She likes to pinch at our skin and seems to think it's funny that it hurts. When we try to catch her rolling around on video, she sits still. Yet, when nobody is looking, she'll roll over and destroy the puzzle that Gavin is working on.

She is still not sleeping very well. Some nights are better than others. Just when I think we're turning the corner, she'll have a night where she is up four times. It's frustrating. But, aside from the sleeping issues, she really is an easy baby. She has a playful personality and continues to wear a big grin on her face. Gavin loves to play with her. They have their own little games where he shows her all the toys and she grabs them from him. He can't wait for her to get bigger so she can play in his bedroom. There is something really sweet about witnessing their interactions.

Liv is starting to scoot herself around but isn't crawling. I have a feeling that once she attempts it, she'll get it. I'm starting to think about what we'll need to do to get this place babyproof again. Amazing how time flies. It doesn't seem that long ago that I was writing similar things about Gavin. We moved to Albany when Gavin was 9 months old - crazy to think that not only is he almost 3 1/2, but we have a 7 month old too! Here are a few pictures of our evil genius from the past month.

Life with Olivia at 6 months

Olivia is now six months old and an absolute joy. She is one happy girl, always smiling! She still wants to be held or interacted with most times, but she is enjoying her jumperoo and other toys. I had forgotten how fun this age is- personality is in full effect. We are all enjoying getting to know her and figuring out what makes her laugh or smile.

She has been a mama's girl from day 1, but has really taken to Adam over the last month. She gets so excited when he gets home from work and if he doesn't come say hello immediately, she gets mad! It's very cute. Olivia is fascinated by Gavin and also her beagles. It's so fun to watch her take everything in. We just love our little gal!

Here are her 6 month stats and a few of my favorite pictures from the last month:
Weight: 17 lbs, 12 oz (75th percentile)
Height: 26.8 inches (76th percentile)
Sleeping Habits: Still up twice at night, but getting better.
Developmental skills: Sitting up supported and for short amounts of time without support. Rolling. Eating bananas and squash. Yum!

Life with Olivia at 5 months

Olivia is now 5 months old. Time continues to pass quickly. Yet, somehow, it feels like she has been in our family for much longer. It's becoming easier for me to fathom leaving the house with both kids by myself. We are still in the stage where we have to pack up the diaper bag with all the necessities. It's even more work now that the weather is cold. Big coats, hats, and mittens are required. But before I know it, the hats will come off and I will be back to just tucking a couple of diapers and a little baggie of wipes into my purse. I will be yelling at the kids to stop fighting in the back seat. So, for now, we enjoy our little peanut girl as a 5 month old.

She has gotten so much stronger. We have added an exersaucer and a Baby Jumperoo to the living room. Nothing like huge pieces of baby paraphernalia to give your home that extra something! Do you remember that post I wrote when we first moved here, about The Pottery Barn colliding with Toys R Us? What a joke! It's just crazytown here. And really, no amount of wicker baskets can save us! I do my best to keep things tidy, but to be honest, I don't even care anymore. I just want my kids to be happy and not crying. So, bounce away little girl! It's nice that she has things to entertain herself. And I have my Real Simple magazine to escape to... an organized world that seems very far away at the moment.

Over the last month, not much has changed with Liv. She continues to smile a lot and her giggles are more frequent. Gavin loves to make her laugh. It's nice that he loves her so much. When she cries, he says, "It's ok, Yidia. You're alright." It's so funny that he pronounces her name, "Yidia." I love to pick out funky outfits for her and give her a little style. Adam likes to tell her about how he intends to make her a tomboy. She is really cute with Adam, kind of flirty. When he smiles at her, she smiles but looks away really quickly, burying her face in my shoulder.

She now weighs 16 pounds and is getting all chunky. I like it when babies have a little bulk to them. She seems a lot less breakable now. I can carry her around on my hip, which makes things a little easier. Her sleeping patterns continue to be ridiculous and I don't see much point in discussing them. It is what it is. I know that she will give me 8 hours of sleep someday... when, I really don't know.

We are really looking forward to our trip home later this month. Can't wait to introduce her to family and friends. Until then, here are a couple of pictures.

Dressed up for a Thanksgiving party with friends

This rice cereal is still gross, even if you did add applesauce to it!