Boating Beauty

Saturday was such an awesome day! I was super excited when I saw Dad come in to get me up on Saturday morning. It was the first time that I had seen him since Monday morning, with the exception of about 15 minutes on Wednesday, which was nothing more than a tease, and I had missed him so much. That was the start to a wonderful weekend, which we spent up at Bob and Deb's lake house on Lake Lanier. Most of Mom and Dad's closest friends spent the weekend with us: Mrs. Allyson, Mr. Russell, Mrs. Teri, Mr. Justin, Mrs. Lisa, Mr. Monroe, Mrs. Heather, Mr. Dirk, Mr. Joe Guy, and Mr. Rommel. It was so nice of Mrs. Allyson to invite us all, so thank you. We had so much fun hanging out on the dock and eating good food, like the low country boil on Saturday night. Mr. Bob took all of the ladies out on his boat, which in theory sounded like a great idea; however, they forced me to wear this huge life jacket that prevented me from moving my neck and arms. I hated the life jacket - law or not! It didn't help that the boys had taken the boat out to do some wake boarding and did not return until right before nap time; therefore, I was hungry and exhausted. Once the boat started moving, I really freaked out! I cried hysterically most of the trip before falling asleep while standing up against Mom's chest on the way back to the dock. I need hair before wind can feel good blowing through it! It was miserable, and the memory wouldn't go away even after Dad took me up to the house for a bottle and a nap. I threw a terrible fit for about two hours, during which Dad and Mrs. Allyson tried to comfort me. Someone should have called Mom to come back from the boat. I don't think boating is going to become one of my favorite past times anytime soon. That being said, the rest of the weekend was great. I loved sitting on the dock, throwing water wings around, and eating snacks. A fish - I mean an alligator - attacked Mrs. Teri and left a huge mark, so Mom just dipped my toes in the water and refrained from taking me swimming in the lake. I was the only baby, so I got tons of attention. Mrs. Teri and Mrs. Lisa helped Mom give me a bath and played with me until I went to bed; I had so much fun with them. Mrs. Teri continued my entertainment trash education. I can't wait for Mrs. Lisa to have her baby so that I can teach him or her all of the fun things in life, like spitting food and stealing the dog's toys. Although everyone else stayed up and partied, I went right to sleep at bedtime because I was so exhausted from the sun and lack of an earlier nap. Apparently, people came in and looked at me while I was sleeping - how could they resist - and made quite a raucous outside my door, but nothing disturbed me. Sunday was just as nice; having lunch overlooking the lake is very peaceful. Mrs. Teri got up and played with me in the morning, and I flirted like crazy with Mr. Justin by smiling at him and then quickly crawling away just to turn around, smile at him again, and crawl right back, which I did several times - practice makes perfect. We spent most of the day down at the dock before going home too see Aunt Mallory, who had stayed at our house to keep Opie company. It was the perfect summer weekend, and summer is quickly becoming my favorite time of year, so far.

On Monday night, Grandma Purnell came up and had dinner with me. She just got back from her ten day trip on Saturday night, and she just couldn't wait to see me. I was so excited to see her that I immediately reached out for her to hold me. I love my Grandma! I thanked her for coming to see me by pulling up and standing completely by myself for the first time. She fed me one of my favorites, ice cream, and then I slung her shoes around the living room for about 30 minutes before bedtime. I was glad to hear that Grandma had a great time visiting old friends and relatives; she deserved it.

Yesterday, Mom and I went to the Moms' lunch at Mrs. Lindsi's house. It was my first time playing with Luke as a crawler. I crawled after him while he pushed his walker for an insane amount of time; in fact, my knees are still bruised today. Then I tackled him a few times while trying to hug him - I'm sticking to my story. I can't help that I am a bit of a brute; a girl has got to learn to hold her own in this world, and I would say that I am pretty good at that. Mrs. Lindsi blew bubbles for us, and Mrs. Allison made me laugh until I peed in my pants, literally. I love Moms' lunch days, especially when Lucas is there. He is so cute, and now, he can't get away!

I learned to dance this week, which consists of waving my hands around and shaking my head; I like to dance to the Imagination Movers and with my singing duck; although, I refuse to let Mom capture it on video. The less footage she has with which to embarrass me later on in life, the better off I am. I have also started getting the hang of walking while someone holds my hands, and this morning I practiced pulling up on my music station and on the side of the couch. I must say that I am becoming quite proficient. By the way, check out my name on my butt; now, that is hot. Speaking of hot, I have this new facial expression that looks like a cross between being scared and being surprised where I twist my mouth into a really big, scary sort of smile and push my eye brows all the way up; however, I don't do it when I am surprised or scared; I just do it to keep everyone entertained. To top everything off, I took my first five steps all by myself using the walker that Grandma Purnell got for me! Look out world; Olivia Lee will be a walker in no time!