Oops!

When I last wrote and said that time will probably fly by, I guess I meant that! I feel like I just wrote an update, but when I looked that it was 9 weeks ago, I realized that I definitely have not updated everyone on life in Olivia land!
Olivia is almost 21 months old. I have now started saying that I have a 2-year old, because I hate saying 21 months and watching people as they try to figure out how old that is. It freaks Phil out when I say '2 year-old' though because that means she is moving well past the baby stage, trekking through the toddler stage and getting close to the young child stage! As I mentioned before, each day is a new adventure. Olivia is developing new skills every day and it is fun to see her try new activities. She is mommy's little helper and assists me with taking dishes out of the dishwasher and handing them to me. She can help take clothes out of the dryer and either puts them on the floor or gives them to me. If we ask her to get something, she understands us and will go and grab that item (sometimes... if she feels like it). With her toys, she can play pretty independently for awhile. Her new toy interests have been puzzles (she enjoys dumping off the pieces more than putting them on) and plastic animals and has an on-and-off relationship with her baby dolls. She is stinking adorable with her ability to make some animal noises. If we point to something in a book or on a toy, she is pretty good with doing a dog, cat, lion and horse noise.

Happy Halloween from the little piggy!

Last week, I had the Birth to 3 program come and evaluate her, just to make sure things are going well. Olivia is right on track with her adjusted age and is even doing most items in her 'real' age. By the time a child is 24 months, they expect a preemie baby to be up to par with most of his/her peers. So, since we were getting close to that age, I wanted to see what we could work on with her and get information on what to expect next. It was great to talk with the program staff because some babbling noises that I thought were jumbled actually were phrases that I just wasn't picking up on. Of course now that I heard her say a few of those phrases, I can't believe I wasn't able to pick up on those words before. Phrases such as 'my mommy,' 'where did it go,' and 'go there' are a few that we hear. Words that she can say/we can recognize (and that I can remember right now!) are shoe, mommy, daddy, dog, cat, go, nana (for banana), bubble, hat, baby, and no.

Olivia continues to mimic us, so it's been a wake up call to watch my words and actions. This morning, we were getting ready and I said something in a whisper and then you could hear Olivia trying to say that word in a whisper. Olivia has discovered her nose and has started picking it. So anytime she puts a finger in her nose, Phil or I will say no and then try to redirect her or try and put her hand down. As most of you know, I have the horrible habit of biting my nails. The other night, I was biting them and Olivia saw me. So she came over and put her hands on mine and said 'no' while pushing my hand away from my mouth. Good girl!

19 month pictures

With winter here, we are now entering the struggles of dealing with the cold. She likes wearing her winter hat, but hates her winter jacket. She enjoyed playing in the snow for a bit the other day, but hates being cold. It seems like any errand that we need to run takes a few minutes longer as we do the jacket struggle. But, we are continuing with our weekly trips to the library to get books and try to attend the children's story time. And she takes a gymnastics class once a month. On Wednesday nights, Phil and I teach a 5th grade class during our church's religious education hour, so Olivia gets to play in the church's nursery for an hour or so. We've been getting into a routine with things and it's great to have such an adorable helper that loves being with people. We continue to count our blessings for this little girl!  

Loves reading like a big kid!