Gobble, Gobble! The Holidays are Here!

"Baby, it's cold outside", which means the holidays are here. Thanks to Mrs. Allison, I've got my new hat and scarf ready to brave the winter wind.
We started the holiday season off with a pretty dress that I helped pick out, a line full of kids, a choo-choo train, and a few tears; that's right, folks, we have already been to see the big man. While visions of a 2 and 1/2 hour wait and screaming kids danced in our heads, we headed to the mall the day before Thanksgiving in hopes of no line for a picture with St. Nick. We made it there right as Santa was making his way down the escalator, - I still want to know when Santa started taking the escalator instead of his sled and reindeer, but whatever, I will suspend my disbelief on one more account. Although he wasn't quite as exciting as the choo-choo train circling the mall, I was still in awe, hence the finger in the mouth, awestruck look on my face. We only had to wait 20 minutes: Mission accomplished! During our entire wait, I anxiously looked over the rail so as to catch a glimpse of the choo-choo as it chugged on by. I really like looking at the train, but I have no desire to ride it, which is dually noted with my "No Choo-Choo!" repetitions if you try and get me too close. All was well and good in the land of Santa until Mom tried to leave me with that scary, bearded man. No Way! To avoid a total and complete freak out, Mom sat next to Santa, and I sat on her lap; I still wasn't able to contain all the tears though. Through the sobs and desperate calls for "Daddy, up" with outstretched arms, we were able to get one picture, and I was able to choke out "bicycle" and "Thomas movie" as my wish list. I am not a fan of this tradition; Santa better bring me the bike and the movie after all I went through. At least I got to play with the retro kitchen which I have added to my list, at Pottery Barn and help Daddy pick out jeans when the torture was over. After the Santa adventure, Mom, Dad, and I headed to dinner, and believe it or not, it was my best restaurant visit in months; although, I did color on the Cheesecake Factory's table. A little marker is better than a full blown fit. New rule: Restaurants without arcades seem to work much better. The obligatory Santa visit can now be checked off of our holiday list, and I have mentioned several times since that I "No like Santa". I'm feelin' the holiday spirit.

Just as a quick explanation on our recent restaurant catastrophes due to my mentioning it in the last paragraph, I was forcibly removed from Summit's a couple of weeks ago after I threw a fit because I didn't want to sit down and wait until after dinner to play in the arcade. I was taken outside and threatened by each parental unit with the choice of either sitting nicely or going home, and after I continued with my display of the terrible-twos, Mom and Dad left full drinks and made good on their threats. I did not, however, go down easily. I took it all the way to the parking lot where Mom and Dad struggled for 10 minutes, in the rain, to get me buckled into my car seat as I stiffened my body and screamed. That was quite a fun family outing. Olivia - 1, Summit's - 0

Back to something a little nicer, I was not forcibly removed from Thanksgiving dinner, for which I believe we are all thankful. On Thanksgiving morning, I jumped right into tradition by enjoying a little Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, which seemed to really intrigue me for only about 20 minutes. I made sure to watch it from several different angles, which included the arm of the couch, the floor, and my princess chair, to get the full effect. I did a few dance numbers with the performers, and then the whole thing lost my attention. I mean, where were the real stars? I saw no Thomas, which means it was lacking considerably, and Jessica Simpson...really? Mom made a chocolate pie, and I got to lick the spoon, which could have kept my interest for as long as the parents would have allowed. I even licked some splattered chocolate off of Mom's shirt while talking to Aunt Mal on the phone; God, I am funny! Mom, Dad, and I spent the remainder of the holiday at Great Aunt Marsha's house with Great Aunt Marsha, Great Uncle Ray, Cameron, Haley, Aunt Stephanie, Uncle Ian, Harper, Grandma Purnell, Mr. Denny, Great Aunt Robin, Hannah, Great Grandma Jenkins, and Mr. Dave. Great Grandma brought me a huge bear and pajamas with horsies on them, which I have insisted on wearing as many nights as possible. I spent the majority of my time playing with and following behind Cameron, but I also snuck in a few minutes to inhale mashed potatoes and try to destroy Aunt Marsha's table with my fork. Haley and I had a little girl time on the stairs after dinner, and Cameron showed me how to use a yo-yo; it glowed, and I was mesmerized. I also showed my incredibly ladylike side and used the ottoman as a trampoline; good thing Cameron was right there to catch me when I bounced off. What!? I do the same thing at home. I had to learn what putting your arm around someone means; at first, I just kept hitting Cameron in the head, but then I got the hang of it. The grown ups forced us to take a bunch of family photos, which I am sure to treasure someday, but it took bribery by chocolate to get me in any of them. In fact, I know how to keep the chocolate coming, for I kept sneaking to the dessert table to enjoy cookie after cookie, and Mom didn't even figure it out until after the 3rd or 4th cookie when I left a little evidence on my face. I was wired! At one point, I was running with Cameron, and I ran right into the couch, my feet kept going, and I slammed my head on the hardwood floor, which prompted a little screaming and the need for ice cubes. In all fairness, I deviated from my course while trying to avoid running into Uncle Ian. Later in the evening, I discovered the air vents, which mandated I lift my dress and let the air flow. I want to know why we don't have air vents on our floor at home - not fair! I had so much fun on Thanksgiving! Harper stole a bit of my attention this year, but that's okay because she is really cute. She tried to stay awake as much as possible, but eventually she just gave in and passed out in Grandma's arms. Poor girl didn't even get any mashed potatoes - next year, Harper, next year. That being said, she seemed pretty content with her pacifier, which Mommy noticed looked a little big since it went over her nose. Aunt Stephanie insisted that it was the correct size, but come to find out, Mom got a call the next day when Aunt Stephanie realized that it was not the correct size, and to top it off, Aunt Steph has no idea where the pacifier even came from since it doesn't match the ones she bought. She thinks that she may have grabbed it on accident at the doctor's office, which means she stole someone else's binky for Harper! Silly, Aunt Steph. Don't worry, Steph, I know from the experience of having a silly Mom that this will not be the last time that you have an 'Ooops Mommy Moment'. The food was great; the company was even better, and I think that Thanksgiving was a huge success! I've loved looking at the pictures too; there is one of Daddy that I insist on seeing everyday because I think that it is so funny. Thank you, Buices, for having all of us and making such great food; the bock-bock was excellent - never mind that everyone kept trying to convince me that it was turkey. I am thankful for chocolate and air vents, as well as all of you.

Dancing to Green Day during the Macy's Day Parade:


The holiday season just adds to everyday fun like...

Catch Air and lunch with Tyler and Lucas last week. We all know that I love me some Catch Air! Mrs. Allison helped us build a house, of which Lucas and I had a ball crawling in and out. Then Lucas and I got in a little gym time, and Tyler rode the big, scary banana; he is brave, for that is one dangerous banana. We were even able to get in a little cardio for the moms when we made them ascend the jump-jump about 10 times. All three of us were excited to participate in a quick dance party before heading out for lunch. At Chick-fil-A, we quickly downed some bock-bock - yes, I always call chicken bock-bock no matter how many times I am pressured to call it chicken - and then begged to go into the play area. Apparently, Lucas endured a terrifying experience in a McDonald's play area, so he was a little hesitant on going up and mostly hung at the bottom. He did come up long enough for us to have a little fight over the car at the top; I shared, kind of. I, however, went up and never came down. I made friends with a bunch of older kids, and Mom even heard me introducing myself, unprompted, with "Hi, I'm Olivia" at one point. Check it out: That's a full sentence introduction with the correct pronoun. I can already tell that having an English teacher for a mother is going to make me a nerd. To get her back for my emerging neurosis, I refused to come down the slide to go home, and after about 15 minutes of begging, Mommy had to climb up after me. Of course, just as she got her shoes off and got to the top with all of the crazy kids, I came down the slide. Take that, Mom.




































The next day, which just happened to also be the day after my Summit's fiasco, I met Tyler at Midway Park to take advantage of the beautiful weather. Unfortunately, Tyler didn't get to stay long; his mommy forced him to leave after he threw a fit and would not listen - sounds familiar. Mom and I talked about how Tyler had to leave just like I had to leave Summit's the previous night for not behaving and listening. I talked about Tyler and Summit's on and off for the rest of the day, so I get it, but we'll just have to see if it deters me next time. Anyways, I was sad to see Tyler go, but there were lots of kids at the park that day with whom to make friends. Like always, I gravitated towards the older boys. I had a full conversation about seeing trees through the binoculars with one little boy; basically, he said he could see non-existent trees, and I totally agreed. If make believe trees make me cool, then I am down. Later, I stomped on ice cubes with a group of boys because, again, I am cool like that. There were a couple of girls at the park as well, and I did enjoy following and copying the oldest girl. I also had a great time swinging from the bars while making monkey noises. The hula hooping did get a little out of control, - see the video - but don't worry; I got right back up and kept going. I hate the onset of the cold weather because I am really going to miss my park days, but we will get them in whenever we can.
















Since it was still decently warm the following day, Mom and I spent our evening before dinner at the neighborhood park where I got to show off my Juicy Couture tracksuit. I've had it since before I was born, thanks to Grandma Trish, and although the pants are still a little big, Mom couldn't wait any longer. I enjoyed my wagon ride down to the park and then jumped right in with all of the older kids. One older girl was kind of mean to me and kept trying to push me around; don't worry though, Mom defended my honor. A 3-year-old little boy took a liking to me and followed me around while helping me climb and slide. I like a sensitive boy who takes care of me. I eventually broke off on my own and did a little balance beam before enjoying the sunset ride home.

All of the park play necessitated a bathtime swim. I love to stick my head under the running water and pretend to swim in the bubbles. Also, I have finally conceded since falling and hitting my butt on the metal partition to give the shower another shot. I insisted on spending about 20 minutes in the shower the other day washing my leg over and over again while repeating, "I wash all myself". My new favorite phrase, literally, is "All myself", which I stubbornly repeat as I do everything all by myself now. I am definitely an independent girl and a water baby; the bath will just have to do until pool season comes back around. Plus, the acoustics in the bathroom are amazing: I am a gifted "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" singer!

The hair is finally getting thick and luscious - well, maybe not luscious, but at least, we are moving in the right direction. When I woke up from nap one day last week, I had really messy hair! This may not be a big deal to those of you who have been getting haircuts since you were 6 months old, but in my house, it was cause for celebration...or at least for a photo op, like it's ever not a cause for a photo op. Anyways, if the front would just grow in at the same rate as the back, I may be able to avoid the emerging mullet.

So, I have suckered another Publix buddy into a weekly tradition. Mrs. Peggy gave me a coupon book for Wendy's Frosties a few weeks ago, and I thought it was money, so I told Mrs. Peggy that "I love money". Since then, she has given me a quarter every Monday to put in my pocket and to take home and put in my piggy bank. I certainly know how to work it! Thank you, Mrs. Peggy. Mom keeps trying to tell everyone at Publix that they don't need to spoil me so, but I am really glad they don't listen to her.

The Saturday before last, I wore my Georgia Tech shirt and rooted on Dad's team. I also managed to doctor my yellow balloon; I'm trying to figure out what is going on with my balloons since I keep finding them popped in the trash can. I must find the root of this tragic pattern. I took yellow balloon's temperature, gave it some medicine, and finally came to the conclusion that it must be the string that is causing the problems and tried to cut it off. Mom and I also played around with the camera, and I took some mood shots: Happy! Sad! Surprised! Maaad! After wearing myself out, Pooh and I took a nice relaxing ride on my horse; I can't wait until it is a real horse that we are riding. I keep telling Mom and Dad that "Livie ride horse...someday"; I also let them know that "Livie ride yellow bus...someday" and "Livie ride train...someday". Who keeps telling me someday?! That evening, the Germanys came up so that Daddy and I could hangout with Mr. Justin and McKenzie while Mommy took Mrs. Teri for a much needed night out. Mrs. Teri brought me a big, yellow bow since she said that McKenzie can't have bigger bows than I. Mrs. Teri, where there is more hair, there are bigger bows: It is a sad truth that I have come to accept. I picked out a few toys that I thought McKenzie would really enjoy, including my laughing alligator, about which she was not as impressed as I had hoped, and I even let her hold my new friend, Spud. She was more interested in sleeping though, so I quickly took Spud back. She is really sweet. I'll wake her up next time so that she doesn't miss all of the fun. Speaking of new friends, Mommy gave me one of her pigs from when she was little, and I named it Piggy. I insist that Piggy go everywhere and do everything with me nowadays. I even got Piggy a little wet while trying to make sure that he wasn't thirsty. I love Piggy. I also love baby McKenzie, Mrs. Teri, and Mr. Justin, of course.

Although I show love for the Yellow Jackets 95% of the season, on the day that it really counts, I am all Bulldog. What can I say, I like to root for the winning team - 8 wins out of the last 9 years that Mom and Dad have been together for the game. Sorry, I know that was a low blow for you Tech fans. I've been brainwashed, and I blame it all on Mom. I did look really cute in my UGA cheerleading uniform though; maybe after another year of hair growth, I can actually wear pigtails to go with it. On gameday, I enthusiastically woke Dad up and practiced my cheers for both teams. That evening we headed to dinner with Mrs. Amy, Mr. Chad, and their new, 12-week-old baby, Ryan. Mrs. Amy is Mom's closest friend from college, and she and the fam were in from Virginia for the Thanksgiving holiday. Mom and Mrs. Amy duly noted that dinner with small kids is very different than dinner out was in college. Ryan was such a sweetie, and he even held my hand, which I thought was so cool. I was surprised that someone so little held my hand. I talked about it for the remainder of the dinner. Baby Ryan finally decided that he'd had enough, so we left and headed to Justin and Teri's to watch the game with them, the Lambs, Mr. James, Mr. Rob, and Mr. Keith. It was fun playing with Avery and McKenzie; although, I can't wait until they get old enough to run around with me. McKenzie's playmat reminded me of the good ol' days. Mom and I had to represent for the Bulldogs with all of the prevalent Tech yellow and gold. I must say that all of us girls looked adorable no matter what color we were wearing. I was, of course, excited to see Mr. Justin, and we laughed and played before we all sang "Happy Birthday" to him, which was just a ploy to dig in to his cake - sorry, Mr. Justin, love ya, but I think I love cake just as much. I made sure to cheer on both teams and got to stay up way past bedtime. Thanks for having us, Mrs. Teri and Mr. Justin. It was so good to see everyone. Happy Birthday, Mr. Justin!

Well, I must bid adieu, for Mom and I have a lot of shopping to do before Christmas Eve. At least, I get to do the new clothes dance in the dressing rooms - video below. Oh, and speaking of shopping, I was so excited to ride the hippopotamus on the carousel at the mall the other day - yes, I specifically asked for the hippopotamus before even seeing the carousel, and Mom didn't even know there was a hippo. Dense! However, after sitting on the hippo for several minutes while waiting for the ride to begin, I suddenly decided that riding a hippo was not such a good idea. After shouting,"Mommy down!", we ended up going round and round while sitting on the bench, once again. Hey, at least I got a little closer to riding one of the animals this time. Small steps, people, small steps. I hope everyone is checking items off of their holiday lists with ease; let me know if you need a chaueffeur to drive you from errand to errand.