"The future's so bright, I gotta wear shades"

I am beyond busy this week helping Mom get ready for her and Dad's anniversary cruise and get me ready to stay with Grandma for 6 days. We've got lots of errands to run, packing to complete, and cleaning to do, so this will be a quick blog.

Mom and I spent every day last week at the pool with Lucas and Mrs. Allison, whose name I have finally gotten down; we like to go in the morning and stay for lunch before heading home for nap time. Trust me, a nap is a welcome event after a full morning at the pool. I am starting to get really brave in the water; I love to walk under the mushroom waterfall and climb the stairs under the sheet of water. I am also getting really good at kicking, and I went completely under water today. I still get a little freaked out when Mom tries to let go of me, but I am getting closer to trusting my water wings. Lucas is really good at floating with his, so that definitely makes the idea more appealing. Lucas and I both insist on going down the big slide about 20 times a day, and Lucas and I have decided that we always have to hold hands while walking to the slide. It garners lots of "Awwws" from onlookers; although, I do tend to drag him along. As soon as I wake up every morning, I ask for the pool; I am definitely a water girl, just like Mama, and I have the cutest little tan to prove it.

Mama, Dada, and I ate dinner on the patio at Buckhead Pizza while listening to the live music on Friday night. I clapped and cheered, "Hooray!" very loudly every time the band stopped playing while they were warming up; they took notice and definitely appreciated it. I also made a couple of new friends, who spoke French by the way, and the three of us had a ball dancing and giving each other daps, a.k.a. fist bumps, and high fives. The little girl was really sweet and wanted to play with me the whole time, but I, of course, was more interested in chasing down her little brother. I think that they were both impressed by my awesome dance moves, and I really enjoyed meeting them.


On Saturday, I stayed home and went to the pool with Dada while Mommy attended Mrs. Amy's baby shower. Mrs. Amy is Mama's best friend from college, and her baby is due at the beginning of September. We don't get to see Amy very much because she lives in Virginia, so we made sure to also meet her for lunch yesterday. I announced to anyone who would listen that we were meeting Amy while we were waiting for her to arrive, so she got a by-name welcome from one of the managers when she got there. I was so excited to see her; although, she did try to cut me out of the picture that she took of the three of us, but I did make it very hard for her to get a picture of me by telling her, "No!" every time she asked to take one, so I guess I deserved it. I was a little wild, but it was past nap time, so at least I wasn't melting down. Mrs. Amy, we can't wait to meet your little one, and it was so good to see you. You look wonderful!

Speaking of babies, which seems to be the constant topic nowadays, Mrs. Stephanie and Mr. Eric welcomed Madelyn Page Molletta yesterday, Monday, June 28. She was born at 7:48 a.m., weighing 8 lbs. and 4 oz. Mrs. Stephanie was only in labor for 6 hours total, which apparently is a big deal based on the number of people Mom has told. Mama and I got to meet Miss Madelyn today, and she is so cute and tiny. I'm a little put off that she already has more hair than me, but I guess that's just the story of my life. Mrs. Steph is doing great and looked so natural with Miss Madelyn; it's like she has always been here. Mr. Eric seems to be taking to the Dad role pretty well himself as well. I had to be, or tried to be, quiet in the hospital since Mom explained that you have to be quiet around babies when they are sleeping. I did say, "Hi, Baby" over and over, just to remind her of my presence. Miss Madelyn slept most or the time, but I did get to pat her on the head, gently, and give her a quick kiss. Mom was very proud of my behavior, which she told me again and again after we left, and even Mr. Eric commented on how well-behaved I am, but you have to be good in hospitals - don't cha know. Madelyn really is beautiful! Congrats Mrs. Steph and Mr. Eric; we are so happy for you guys.

I got to see Aunt Mallory and Mr. James this weekend, which made me super happy. I even got to spend an entire day with just Dada on Saturday, during which we went down to the pool and saw Lucas and his Mommy and Daddy. The more friends and family I see on the weekends, the happier I am, and spending time with just Dada made the weekend even better. I totally idolize my Dada. In fact, I didn't get to see him two days last week, and when he got home from work on Friday, I got really excited and accidentally broke something in the bedroom. Dada called for Mama to come and get me, and I thought that he was mad at me, so I lost it. I cried so hard that I was sobbing, and I wouldn't let Dada pick me up; I would just lay on Mama's shoulder and shudder as I cried. Dada, you hurt my feelings. I don't care if Mama gets mad, but when you get mad at me, even though you didn't even really act mad towards me, my whole world shatters.

I copy everything that Mama does, and while we were running errands the other day, Mama hung her sunglasses from her shirt, so I have been tucking my sunglasses into my shirt, or into the seat belt harness when in the car, constantly for the past several days. I copy everything anyone says or does. I am a sponge at this point! I have had several strangers comment on my immense vocabulary and clear speech lately, so the copying must be working for me. Mom especially likes the way I say tomato. Oh, and I always check to make sure that everyone in the car is wearing a seat belt and everyone at the dinner table has his/her napkin in his/her lap. Just call me polite safety girl!

Well, I've gotta run, and I hate to break it to ya, but there probably won't be another blog for a couple of weeks since I will be beyond busy bossing Grandma around and getting my way about everything next week. Have a happy and safe 4th of July!

Diaper Days of Summer

First and foremost, Happy Father's Day to the best Dada ever - my Dada! He makes me laugh; he chases me around; he kisses my boo-boos; he lets me get away with everything, and I love him so much! We basically turned this past weekend into a weekend for Daddy. We started off the weekend by running in the Run4Dad Prostate Cancer 5K. We did have to leave our house at 6:45 a.m. to get to the race, which is way too early for me, but Dada really wanted to run in it, so I didn't complain. A lady with crazy abs led a warm-up before the race, and I enthusiastically joined in on the high kicks, trunk twists, and squats, mostly because the teenage girls in front of me were doing it. I even gave a round of applause at the warm-ups' conclusion. I swear there were more people than are shown in the video below; they just dispersed as soon as the warm-up ended to get to the starting line, and I took my time. There is no way they would start the race without me. Although the race had only about 200 - 250 runners, it did make it on to the 11 Alive News. Why they didn't feature me during the warm-up segment is a total mystery since I was the cutest runner out there. This was the first official race in which I participated, and I got to stroll along while eating my snack as Mama pushed me the entire 3.12 miles. Dada stayed with us during the first half, but then we encouraged him to run ahead and compete since we knew that was what he really wanted to do. Dada came in at 30:51; Mama and I weren't too far behind with a time of 33:22. It was a lot of fun but not as much fun as brunch with Mrs. Teri. Since the race was down next to Perimeter Mall, Mrs. Teri was able to meet us for brunch afterwards. She has a baby in her belly, just like Aunt Stephanie. I enjoyed eating off of Mrs. Teri's plate; she is always so good to me. I'll cheese it up for you anytime, Mrs. Teri. Thanks for meeting up with us. After the race, Mom, Dad, and I ran a couple of errands and then went to the pool before it was time for a nap. Now, that was one busy morning! After nap, Grandma came over and watched me while Mom and Dad went out for a Dad's Day/date night dinner. Grandma knows that I love to dress up nowadays, so she brought me a fairy skirt, crown, and wand. Yay for Grandma! Even after a jampacked day, Saturday was really just the pre-Father's Day festivities.

When Mom and I woke up on Sunday, we quickly finished our Father's Day art projects - a t-shirt and homemade Father's Day card with my hand prints (thanks to Mrs. Allison, *wink, wink*); then we waited for Dada to get up so that we could give him all of his gifts: a Lucky t-shirt with a special message from me written on it, a homemade card, a picture collage coffee thermos, a wok, and special Margarita mix since Dad has been on a Margarita kick lately. We didn't have to wait long since Dada wanted to smoke a whole pork shoulder for Father's Day, and he had to start it at midnight and attend to it every few hours - guys are so weird! After a pancake breakfast and gift giving, Grandma got up, and we all played at the pool until lunch was ready. We had a feast that included pulled pork, potato salad, sweet corn relish, coleslaw, smoked corn on the cob, asparagus, and baked beans - all homemade. That's what Dada wanted for Father's Day. Of course, I enjoyed my red popsicle more than any of the homemade stuff! The rest of the day was a lazy Sunday that included a nap for Dada and a dinner of leftovers, for which Aunt Mal joined us. I was nice enough to share my popsicle with Aunt Mal, and she was nice enough to play Mario Kart on the Wii with Daddy. I hope you had an amazing Father's Day weekend, Dada! You deserved every minute of it for being such a wonderful Daddy! Mama and I love you soooooo much!

So, back to the diaper days of summer...Our AC downstairs went out this week, so I've gotten to spend quite a bit of time running around in nothing but a diaper. I was sporting a diaper the other day while indulging in my current favorite pasttime: climbing onto the arm of the couch and running down like it is a hill, as well as climbing up onto the back of the couch and giving orders from my throne above the rest. I'm queen of the house, or just the couch - whatever. I even sport a diaper when it rains, which it did almost every afternoon last week. Summer is hot, and I look hot in a diaper, so I guess it's all good!

Couch Running:

Last Thursday was my last Gymboree class until fall. We are so busy in the summer that Mom and I decided to take a little break from Gymboree. It was also Lucas' last class since he and his Mommy are doing the same. I believe the concept was up and down; however, I was running around like a wild woman, enjoying every last minute that I didn't really pay attention to the concept. There were some new activities integrated in with the old, like a launching pad from which we jumped to Mrs. Allison, a slope that we ran down, an airlog jump, and a platform for climbing. However, Luke and I made sure to fit in some old favorites, like the trampoline, the green circle slide, the wavy slide, and the rocking horse. We also took a few moments to sit on the airlog and say our goodbyes. Of course, I was overly enthusiastic during the calling of Baby Gymbo; Ms. Michelle played along and called back and forth with me, which made everyone else laugh. I really am a true entertainer. Luke gave me a big hug under the parachute; even though, we are still going to see each several times a week. After class, we both gave Ms. Michelle a big hug, and I gave her a thank you card for being such a great teacher. We hope we get you again in the fall, Ms. Michelle. I made sure to get 3 Baby Gymbo stamps before leaving. Lucas, the Moms, and I decided to do a special, end-of-Gymboree lunch, and Luke made sure to flag down the waiter to make sure I had everything I needed. What a gentleman! I, on the other hand, rolled my eyes at Lucas when he took a cracker off of my plate. I wonder who wears the pants in this friendship - just kidding, Luke. It was sad to say goodbye to Gymboree, but I know that time will fly, and I'll be back calling Baby Gymbo before I know it.

Hugs from Lucas are always welcome!

I'll follow Lucas anywhere:

Airlog Bounce:

Enjoying our favorite slide one last time:

Yes, I am that funny! Here's to enthusiastically calling Baby Gymbo and making everyone crack up:

One last ride on the Gymboree Choo-Choo:

On Friday, Mrs. Steph Molletta came up to go to the pool and out to lunch with Mom and me. Mrs. Steph has a baby in her belly too! This baby in belly stuff is getting a little confusing; I mean, does EVERYONE have a baby in her belly right now!? Mrs. Steph is actually due today, and she still looks so cute! As far as we know, no baby has come yet, but I can't wait to meet her! As long as you don't go into labor, we'll see you tomorrow, Mrs. Steph. We are trying to keep her busy until Miss Madelyn decides to join us.

Belly babies weren't the only source of excitement last week; I also had my very first blue-raspberry lollipop, and it turned my tongue blue! I could not stop sticking it out and staring at it. A blue tongue has got to be the coolest thing I have seen yet; oh, the lollipop was really good also, so thanks to my dry cleaning man. However, Mom was a little freaky about the whole thing and kept saying, "Don't bite it; just lick it". That Mom is such a worry-wart; I think that I can handle a lollipop, especially one that turns my tongue blue!

By the way, Mom wants you all to know that the Terrible Twos have begun because I have been very whiny, indecisive, and insistent lately. However, I'm hear to tell you to get used to it because two or not two, I like things MY WAY! I also like to say, "Mama" about 4 million times a day now, and if she doesn't answer me, I will just say it over and over with mounting determination. Mom also wishes that she had never taught me the word more; I want more of everything - to see more trucks when we are driving, to see more dogs when we are running, to watch more choo-choos when we are home, to go down the big slide more times when we are at the pool, and so on and so forth. In fact, I don't even wait until the first truck or dog or slide ride has passed before I start asking for, "More" or saying, "Again!" I think that Mom's new favorite saying is, "You know, you really wear me out, but I love you anyway" because I have heard that a lot lately.

Well, we are off for our daily run, during which I can lay back and get comfy while I wave to all of the dogs we pass: Yes, choo-choo Rosie does go running with us. Have a great week, and try to stay cool! You can always do what I do and run around in a diaper!

"Summertime and the livin' is..." Awesome!

I absolutely love the summertime. I get to go to the pool, play outside, wear next to nothing, and hang out with the people I love most. This past weekend included lots of those people. On Friday, Aunt Stephanie came up to visit me and go to the outlets. We bought lots of fun house stuff in preparation for Miss Harper's arrival, and I pushed my stroller around several stores while saying, "Push, push". Aunt Stephanie bought me the best animal crackers and a pair of Polo sailor shorts; I think I prefer the cookies, but Mom was really excited about the shorts. Thanks, Aunt Steph. Then we went to lunch where an old lady stared at me the entire time; I know that I am cute, but seriously! I colored more than I ate, of course, and I had a serious meltdown when Mom wouldn't let me ride in the regular backseat and insisted that I sit in my car seat. Don't you recognize that I am a big girl now!? As I headed home to nap, Aunt Steph continued the outlet hunt, but I was pleasantly surprised to see her when I woke up. I even let her take a bunch of my old baby stuff for Harper to borrow; I'm a good sharer. Aunt Mal and Mr. Chris headed up about dinnertime, and I dressed as a Princess for the occasion; actually, I insist on dressing like a princess almost everyday now - I mean, I look good, so why not. I colored with Aunt Mal and yelled her name every time she walked out of my view. I showed everyone the new veggies that I can cut all by myself: Lucas has the same vegetables, and I threw a huge fit last time I had to leave his house because I wanted to continue playing with them, so Mom got me a set of my own. Anyways, everyone was thoroughly impressed. I gave Miss Harper a couple of kisses as Mom and Aunt Steph tried to explain the whole baby in the belly concept to me. I must have understood somewhat because when Aunt Stephanie was leaving, I said, "Love you, Steph" and then I looked right at her belly and said, "Love you, Baby" totally unprompted. See, I get it people! I can't wait to meet my cuz, Harper, outside of the belly. Thanks for making Friday night so much fun, Aunts.

On Saturday, after a run with the rents and a nap, Mrs. Lisa, Mr. Monroe, and Baby Monroe all came up to go to the pool and have dinner. Baby Mo is so cute and so little. Although, he has gotten a lot bigger since last time I saw him, and he was even big enough to sit in my highchair. He is a really good baby, and he hardly cries at all. I could not take my eyes off of him. I watched Mrs. Lisa get him ready for the pool while pointing out his belly button and giving him kisses. I even let him borrow my ladybug raft to use in the water: I don't really use it anymore since I am now a big girl. Instead, I use water wings, and I even help Dad put them on my arms. All of us hung out in the kiddie pool while I took big steps through the water, walked in circles around the mushroom, and floated on my stomach in the shallow water. Eventually, we headed to the big pool, and Dad took me down the slide while Baby Mo floated around in my raft. Then I kicked my legs with Mr. Monroe before Baby Mo got fed up with the water and insisted on getting out to dry off; in his defense, his diaper did weigh a ton from soaking up all of the pool water. When we got home, I kept Baby Mo, and Mrs. Lisa, entertained while dinner was being made. I love it when Baby Mo laughs really hard. I am so glad that the Throwers came up to spend the day with us, and I hope that Baby Mo had as much fun as I did. He is such a sweet baby!

Grandma got back from her week long trip on Saturday, so on Sunday, she immediately headed up to spend some time with moi; I know, Grandma, you missed me. Grandma told us all about her trip to North Carolina and West Virginia, during which she visited lots of old friends. While Mom and Dad made dinner, Grandma and I walked down to the park and played on the slides. It was sooooo hot out, and by the time I got back home, my head was soaked with sweat; therefore, Grandma and I grabbed a couple of cold drinks and cooled off while watching Chuggington until dinner was on the table. I still love my choo-choos. After Mom wiped my head down, she was able to give me a little mohawk, which I wore to the store on Monday. I can totally pull of the punk rock look. I'm glad you had a good trip, Grandma, but I am also glad you are back because I missed you.

Like always, I attended Gymboree last Thursday, and Mom and I again made it before class started; we are totally on a roll. The concept was still hard and soft, so Luke and I got to play with the soft "raindrops", and our favorite, wavy slide was still part of the setup. We didn't spend the entire class on the slide this time; we actually branched out a bit, found a pretty neat tunnel, and even learned to walk across the balance beam all by ourselves. I discovered some hand puppets and put on a little puppet show with one of the other girls in my class. When it came time to call Baby Gymbo, I jumped right in, cupped my hands around my mouth, and called with all my might. Then I looked under the mats and all around to find him. The other Moms thought it was pretty cute, and Ms. Michelle even put the focus on me by saying, "Let's see if Baby Gymbo will come out for Olivia". I love to entertain. One Mom mentioned that her older daughter had come to the class to watch the previous week, and when they left, her daughter kept talking about how cute that little Olivia was. I do what I can. Lucas and I only have one more class before we are done for the summer, so we are going to enjoy every minute while we still can.

Balance Beam Pros

Mrs. Allison's camera takes way better videos than Mommy's, so thank you for sharing them, Mrs. Allison. You really are so good to us, and it does not go unnoticed.

"Row, Row, Row Your Boat..."

Thanks to Rumi's mom who reached out to save me when my Mom just stood there: Thanks a lot, Mom! I know that I am tough, but really!

Parachute tickle! This is the first time that I have consented to lay under the parachute during the parachute tickle, and I thought it was hilarious. I probably should have tried it before now.

"Oh, Baby Gymbo; are you?" Watch me crack the whole room up! By the way, whenever I look for anything at home now - socks, juice cup, Pooh, choo-choo, the remote control, etc - I call it like I call Baby Gymbo: "Oh, [item]; are you?" It seems to work pretty effectively, and the missing items always turn up.

I always get my bye, bye kiss first!

This is my favorite part of Gymboree, next to the bubbles and calling Baby Gymbo. I get so excited when Ms. Michelle blows the choo-choo whistle.

Well, I am off to the pool...

and now, I am back. Most of my playgroup pals are sick this week, so Lucas, Selina, and I decided to have playgroup down at the pool. It is such a beautiful, and hot, day today that the pool hit the spot perfectly. When Mom was laying me down last night, she told me that we would be going to the pool today, and the absolute first thing that I said when she came and got me this morning was, "Pool!" Just like an elephant, an Olivia never forgets - remember that. Mom is starting to give me a little more freedom at the pool, meaning she isn't making me hold her hand the entire time anymore. Lucas has got the kiddie pool down, and he showed me how to go up the stairs and down the slide without Mom's help; although, I did accept Mrs. Allison's help the first couple of times. The video is a little hard to see due to the bright sun, but you get the idea. We had a great time dumping water on each other, climbing up the stairs, going down the slide, and splashing in the pool. I even chased the ball under the mushroom waterfall this time, and the Moms took us down the big water slide. One of my favorite things is still to walk along the steps in the big pool; I'm easily amused. Selina was really brave; she kept falling in the water, but it didn't bother her in the least. After Selina left for nap, Lucas and I had a little pool picnic. I did lose my diving sticks, but that is a small price to pay for a full morning down at the pool with Lu and Lina.

Please give Mickey, whom I call Micsey, a round of applause; he is officially a big mouse now. I've been changing his diaper for the last couple of weeks, and when I took him to the potty the other day, he went in the potty. Actually, his feet went in the potty, but that counts, right? I can't figure out why Mom and Dad have been keeping the potty door closed; Mickey only went for a dip twice. I'm trying to teach him how to use the potty, geesh. As soon as Mom and Dad get back from their cruise, it looks like I will be learning how to use the potty, just like Mickey.

Oh, and thank the stars that Mom finally found a bathing suit for the cruise. Yay! Bathing suit shopping is finally done. I prefer shopping to be solely about me.

Gotta run; it's time to get back to my tunes, so bye for now.