Christmas Pictures

We wanted to get some pictures of Olivia in her Christmas dress, and of Olivia and her cousin Luke together. Here are some of our favorites:

Olivia's First Christmas

We had a great Christmas in Wisconsin. We arrived Thursday night to about 15 inches of snow.

We visited a little while before turning in for the night. On Friday (Christmas Eve), Olivia spent some time with her Grandma and Grandpa and opened a couple of presents while we waited on Jon's sister, brother-in-law, and nephew to arrive.

Hanging out with Grandpa:

Opening an early gift:

Reading her new book:

Jenny, Jeff, and Luke had some issues with their connecting flight and ended up getting in several hours later than planned. We had to put Olivia to bed before they arrived, but we were able to catch up for a while when they got there and play with Luke. The poor little guy had such a long day, but was as cute as could be! I can't believe how much he's grown since this summer, and he is running all over the place! He opened most of his presents that night, as did the adults, before calling it a night.

Christmas Day was very relaxing, simply spending time with family (and eating!) Ha! Olivia sledded for the first time, something her mom has never even done! Jon's dad built a great hill for the kids to sled down... it was perfect! (There is a video at the bottom of this post.) We ended the day with a huge seafood feast, consisting of crab legs, fish, shrimp and scallops. It was delicious! Dinner was followed by a family viewing of Christmas Vacation.

Christmas morning (wearing Luke's Christmas hat):

Olivia and Luke with Grandma and Grandpa:

Ready to go sledding:

Luke and Jenny ready for sledding:

Olivia and Luke taking turns sledding:

On Sunday, we met Jon's college friend, Joe, his wife, Kaia, and their son, Luke, for lunch. This was our first time meeting Luke, as he is just a couple of months old. They were driving through on their way back to Wausau. It was so good to see them, but I forgot my camera so I didn't get any pictures. You'll have to take my word that Luke is adorable!!

On Monday, we all loaded up and headed north to Phillips, WI, where Jon's dad is from. We had a family get-together and it was so good to see everyone. It is always such a good time when we are able to spend time with everyone up there. A couple of Jon's cousins from Albuquerque were even able to join us this time. The time always passes too quickly, but we are looking forward to returning in the spring. (Again, I forgot my camera, so I don't have any pictures).

Jon, Olivia, and I headed back to Chicago on Tuesday, making a short stop in Madison to visit another of Jon's friends, Max, his wife Emily, and their little boy Max. As you may remember, we last saw them in July when Max was just a couple of weeks old. As expected, he has really grown and is a cutie and such a happy boy! We arrived back home late Tuesday night and went straight to bed. We had such a great time with family and friends over the Christmas holiday, leaving us more aware than ever just how much they all mean to us.

Olivia and Daddy sledding (with Phoebs and Dagny following right behind):

7 months old

Olivia turned 7 months old on Christmas Day. What is she up to now? (Be sure to watch the video at the bottom of her crawling.)

- She can still fit into most of her 9 month clothes, but the 12 month ones fit better.
- She still wears a size 3 diaper.
- She sleeps about 11 hours at night (7:30pm-6:30am).
- She only takes short 30-45 minute naps most of the time.
- She is SOOOOO happy! She smiles ALL of the time!
- She loves to play on the floor.
- She can get from a lying down position to a sitting position very easily.
- She can crawl forward, but usually only about two lengths (sometimes more). After that, she just sits up.
- She puts everything in her mouth!
- She "talks" almost nonstop and is extremely loud.
- When I go in to check on her after putting her down for a nap, she is almost always sitting up in the bed, looking up and smiling at me.
- She says "da-da", though she doesn't know what it means.
- She has had most all of the first fruits and vegetables.
- She eats 3 meals a day, the equivalent of 2 jars at each meal.

Olivia Crawling:

Merry Christmas!

We made it to Wisconsin last night and were welcomed by Jon's parents and a yard full of snow. We are returning home early next week and I'll update then with pictures of Olivia's first Christmas. In the meantime, I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas!!

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

Gram is getting antsy to see a couple of new pictures, so I figured I had better update. :) We had a pretty relaxing weekend, with the highlight being a trip to Babies R Us to buy babyproofing items. Olivia still isn't crawling forward, but we figure it will be any day.

Our big news is that Olivia hasn't had a pacifier in over a week! She had been having it only at naptime and bedtime for a little while, but as of last Saturday, she hasn't even needed it for that. I am so thankful that she gave it up on her own, and it didn't become a habit that I had to break. As you can see from the photo below, she has replaced it with her fist! Ha!

We are busy preparing for our trip north for Christmas. I have presents to wrap and bags to pack before we leave for Wisconsin on Thursday, and it's looking like a Winter Wonderland outside our window right now!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

This week, we put up a little Christmas tree. We thought Olivia would like to look at the lights and we were right!

On Saturday, we took Olivia to sit in Santa's lap. I had to scan in the picture, so the quality isn't very good, but you get the idea. She was a little unsure of him at first, but she quickly warmed up.

Saturday night was Jon's office Christmas party.

Today has been a lazy day for us. It is really cold outside and the roads are pretty bad due to ice and snow, so we have just stayed indoors.

6 month check-up

Olivia had her 6 month check-up last week. The pediatrician said she looks great and healthy. She weighs 19lb 4oz and is 27 inches long. That puts her in the 97th percentile for weight and 90th for length. After telling me this, Dr. Egues looked at the chart and said, "Don't be surprised if people ask you if she's walking yet." Why, you might ask, would people ask that? Well, Dr. Egues' next statement explains it. She said, "Because Olivia is the size of the average 11 month old!" Ha! So, needless to say, she's still a big girl for her age. She's also a VERY happy baby. And , who doesn't love a chubby, happy baby?!? :)