Olivia at the March for Babies

March for Babies

Today we went to the March of Dimes March for Babies with our Gymboree mommies and babies.  We had so much fun.  It was a gorgeous day and the walk was great.  At the end we played in the fountains at the park.

After we got home we had lunch and Olivia was sooo tired and she took a long nap.  After she got up we let her play in the kiddie pool.  The water was a bit chilly but she had some fun playing in there.

That's about it for today.  Busy, busy!

Waiting at registration

Olivia snacking

Michelle calculating

The new footing

checking out the fountain after the walk

Ethan and Michelle checking out the fountains

Nicole...wiped out

Beautiful butterfly that we say

All the babies at the fountain

Violet

Olivia giggling

Checking out the kiddie pool at home

Olivia walking at the Loganville baseball game

Boy, oh boy..we are in trouble

We are in trouble... this walking thing has really taken off.  She is going everywhere! Not that we are complaining but we may have to baby proof again. 

Today was a busy day.  Olivia went to daycare.  Brendon got home super early from training and went for a bike ride.  I went for a really HOT run.  It was one of those runs where I felt like quitting so I did so walking to try to keep going.  Then I went and got groceries while Olivia napped.  While she napped Brendon kegged his first beer- Olivia Ale- I guess we can call it Olivia's walking ale. 

Then Brendon decided we would go on a family date.  We went to the Loganville High School Baseball game.  Olivia was pretty good.  But she does NOT want to sit still.  She was good the first 45 minutes or so and then there was a lightning delay and we let her get down and walk.  Well then she didn't want to sit back down. But I think we are going to be pretty busy chasing her around! It is so much fun though!

Tomorrow is the March of Dimes Walk for Babies.  If you are interested in donating click on the link below to donate!

http://www.marchforbabies.org/melissabga

Olivia loves the recliner.  So today I gave her a book!

Olivia Ale - Brendon is so proud!

Walking in the driveway

So happy!

Watching baseball

Enough baseball... time to play!

More walking

Today we had more and more walking.  We are trying to get a good walking video.  Every time she walks a good distance we are never filming.  She walked all the ways from the doors in the office to the door to her bedroom which was probably a good 20- 30 steps.  She laughs hysterically when she is walking it is so funny.

Went to the doctor today about the headache and he said it was a migraine.  He said to take Aleve and Excedrin Migraine.  He gave me a prescription for something if that stuff doesn't work.  But since they are random and sporadic there is no worries.  He said to try to figure out the triggers- food etc. that I had 24 hours before and then try to eliminate whatever the trigger may be.  Everything else was good! The best part was that I lost 37 pounds since I had been there last time! That made me feel a bit better. 

Olivia walking to brush her teeth

Olivia taking steps 2

Olivia Walking Take 1

Short but Sweet

Today's post is short but sweet.  I had a horrible morning... I ended up with a really bad headache at school today and had to go to the school clinic.  It was a little scary for me- so much so I am going to go to the doctor tomorrow about it.

Olivia did great at Gymboree today and took some steps while she was there.  She even pushed the air log today- which is something she normally doesn't like. 

Olivia did good with dinner tonight- more avocado and some pasta.  After dinner we did lots of walking- she did better when we were not videoing! See the videos... see that is why it is short but has a sweet ending!

Success! 2 Days in a row =)

Ahhh... the taste of success... at least for dinner! Another successful night with dinner.  Tonight she had avocado- she tried it last week at Nikki's house- and she had some pizza and carrot cookie.  She also drank all her milk at dinner.  I am hoping this will stick! Now we need to eat dinner earlier.

We had lots of steps today! I think we are getting closer and closer.  I am going to try to get some video tomorrow.  She is doing well going from one thing to another.  In her room I keep backing the ottoman away from her glider further and further.  Tonight I got 5 steps.  Also a little bit of bribery doesn't hurt.  This afternoon it was Goldfish.  I was at the ottoman and she would go to the chair and would go back and forth.  Also stuffed animals worked well too! She even left the ottoman one time and walked towards her farm.  She took about 4-5 steps to get there all by herself! I guess my impatience is starting to get rewarded with some steps.  Each step we celebrate and cheer!

We also played with blocks today.  I made some towers and she just liked to knock them down.  So I guess you could say I played with the blocks but she did help clean them up!

I double posted today, if you didn't notice, there is a post after/before this (however you like to call it) that I posted this afternoon.

I tried to get a picture of her letting go and walking but I missed.

Blocks!

National Infertility Awareness Week

I saw this the other day and have been pondering about something to write. I don't even know where to start.  I can start with this though... you have probably met a person or a couple who is struggling with infertility... it is real and it is a more common conversation I have with people than anything.  I am going to repost something that I wrote last July... it is our journey for our miracle Olivia. At the end I will post some updates!

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Hope...and a Leap of Faith... One Year Later 

This is for my friends that have gone through a similar situation or are going through it right now. This has taken a lot of thought and time to write and it is for you. I rarely write something so personal but I know it hits close to home for many of you.

*** Tissue Warning*** You may or may not need one

As I was thinking back to last summer- yes all the fun times that we are missing out on a little bit this year...it was this time last year that we were hoping and taking a leap of faith with our fertility. Fertility and Infertility whatever you want to call it, it is all the same wrapped up in a box most of the time without a bow.

It is a painful secret that some of us keep inside. Many of us don't like to talk about it because a lot of people don't understand and feel sorry for you OR they just don't know what to say back except for, "Keep trying, it will happen one day." You can only hear that so many times and you are over it. It is almost like you wear a scarlet letter because you are having difficulty getting pregnant. At times you feel like an outsider to your friends that have children. It can be really lonely at times. It also can be awkward. I hated when people asked, "When are you having children?" You just don't know what to say because you just don't feel like explaining everything!

It has become a more popular issue lately in my circle of friends. At times I think it is odd that I know so many people that are going through or went through infertility/fertility treatments. Is it something in the water? Something that we were exposed to when we were children? Who knows.... but it is hard to explain. But I am glad my friends have shared their story and we have been there for each other in the hardest moments of hearing, "Your not pregnant," to the moments of sharing our happiness about success- even if it was a little success such as having normal results of a test.

Last year we were footsteps from the door of the fertility clinic to do IVF (In vitro fertilization). My doctor at the time said we will try 2 more things before I send you over there. #1 Have a Hystosonogram. At this point I had every other test in the world from a Hysterosalpingogram and every blood test in the world. I thought piece of cake. I am sure they will tell me I am normal once again- and they did. No surprise there. #2 He said let's try 3 rounds of Clomid. After talking with Brendon we thought that was our best next option and last option before going to the fertility clinic. So there we went with a little hope and a leap of faith into this little white pill. I decided to give up some things and see if that was part of the problem. I gave up running, caffeine, and tried to only eat organic fruits and veggies. I am not sure if giving up any of those things caused anything else to happen but you just never know. And what do you know...that first round worked....hence Olivia. We did not expect it at all and even at that point I felt like giving up. I became ok at some point with not having children because I was satisfied with my life and what we had been blessed with. Did I deep down give up? Absolutely not but I didn't want my inability to get pregnant to interfere with my life and went on living day in and day out.

But my point being it is a journey and sometimes a painful one. Sometimes you feel people don't understand what you are going through. It is not only a mental game but a physical one. The poking and prodding is bad enough but it is the mental part that really beats you up. You are thinking all the time about- Am I pregnant? Why is that person so lucky? What is wrong with me? Why can't I just have a baby? At times you feel like a failure and nothing people can do or say will make the situation any better. It is exhausting and a lot of time you don't want to talk about it because talking to one more person makes one more person who is hoping that something will happen for you.

It is that hope and leap of faith that kept us going. Even in the darkest hours and the saddest moments that hope is what kept us going. It is when people think having a baby is so easy- well for some of us it is not. I have learned a lot these past few years. I have learned how to be strong and put on a brave face when you are crumbling inside. I have learned that sometimes when you lose your faith that sometimes a light will shine so you can find it. Most of all I have learned patience. I patiently waited for something good to happen. God can only give you so much to burden at a time and I knew he had a plan for us.

To my friends who have opened up and shared with me over the past few years I thank you. I thank you for being there to listen and share our stories. I feel blessed to help others that are still patiently waiting for something to happen. But most of all this is to help others who are struggling with this inside and give you a little hope that if you take a leap of faith something will happen.

Updates:
People keep asking me- is Olivia going to have a brother or sister?  At this point we don't know.  I don't know what plans God has for us.  With all the genetic information we were given about both of us being carriers of Cystic Fibrosis, I really don't know. It is something that has to be discussed at length with my doctor and probably specialists.  Many people have asked me also, with all that you went through to have Olivia would you do that all over again?  My answer is yes.  Now that we know some more information genetically that may help answer some questions in the future.  Right now I feel truly blessed with Olivia and even her pediatrician looked at me and said- you were really lucky.  I am not sure if luck is the right word, I would say blessed with a touch of miracle to it.

Here is another great blog to read and Erin's journey who inspired me to rewrite about this today: doublethereinsteins

Last but not least a poem I found

Thoughts on Becoming a Mother

There are women that become mothers without effort, without thought, without patience or loss and though they are good mothers and love their children, I know that I will be better.
I will be better not because of genetics, or money or that I have read more books, but because I have struggled and toiled for this child.
I have longed and waited. I have cried and prayed.
I have endured and planned over and over again.
Like most things in life, the people who truly have appreciation are those who have struggled to attain their dreams.
I will notice everything about my child.
I will take time to watch my child sleep, explore and discover. I will marvel at this miracle every day for the rest of my life.
I will be happy when I wake in the middle of the night to the sound of my child, knowing that I can comfort, hold and feed him and that I am not waking to take another temperature, pop another pill, take another shot or cry tears of a broken dream. My dream will be crying for me.
I count myself lucky in this sense; that God has given me this insight, this special vision with which I will look upon my child that my friends will not see.
Whether I parent a child I actually give birth to or a child that God leads me to, I will not be careless with my love.
I will be a better mother for all that I have endured. I am a better wife, a better aunt, a better daughter, neighbor, friend and sister because I have known pain.
I know disillusionment as I have been betrayed by my own body, I have been tried by fire and hell many never face, yet given time, I stood tall.
I have prevailed.
I have succeeded.
I have won.
So now, when others hurt around me, I do not run from their pain in order to save myself discomfort. I see it, mourn it, and join them in theirs.
I listen.
And even though I cannot make it better, I can make it less lonely. I have learned the immerse power of another hand holding tight to mine, of other eyes that moisten as they learn to accept the harsh truth and when life is beyond hard. I have learned a compassion that only comes with walking in those shoes.
I have learned to appreciate life.
Yes I will be a wonderful mother.

Cold Day

Wowzers it was windy and cold today.  We stayed inside today because it was so chilly.  I even brought in the hanging plants tonight and the tomatoes that were planted yesterday.

I am not sure what happened in her sleep last night but it looks like she got attacked by a cat! She has some crazy scratches on her face.  Brendon said he saw a little hang nail this morning and got it off so hopefully that was the culprit.

We had some 1 step, 2 step today.  Olivia was doing some steps without holding on to anything between some furniture.  She seems pretty excited when she did it too, plus we make a big deal about it too.

I tried something different after her nap this afternoon.  Instead of giving her a cup of milk when she woke up I changed her routine a bit.  I let her play about 30 minutes after her nap.  Then I asked her if she was hungry and she made her cute clicking sound and said yes.  So I got her a cup of milk and fixed her some dinner.  I actually just gave her a portion of what I was eating.  She did great.  She ate and little food was thrown on the floor! Hooray! So maybe this will be the new routine.  I got to thinking that she may be full after she drinks that cup of milk and doesn't want to eat when it comes dinner time which I would do about an hour after her milk.  So we will see what happens tomorrow- I am sure it will all change!

Texting on her smart phone

I am just soooo cute!

Gardening and Fussy Dinners

We went to church this morning and Olivia was pretty good during the service.  No crying room at all.  After church she napped and after her lunch we ran to the store quick to pick up my wedding rings- which look phenomenal by the way! We played outside for a bit when we got home but it was REALLY windy.  After her afternoon nap we did some playing- and some peek a boo through the fireplace which she thought was quite funny.

Dinner the past few days has not been the greatest.  It seems we cannot find the right food for dinner for her.  Everything seems to end up being thrown on the floor.  I admit lunch and dinner stress me out with her.  I just can't seem to come up with a consistent menu for Olivia.  One day she likes something and the next day she won't touch it.  There are a few things that are guarentees that she will eat- like grilled cheese and yogurt.  But I can't make her grilled cheese every day.  I have looked online for recipes etc but since she has a minimal amount of teeth I can't make most things- she wouldn't be able to chew the difficult things.  During her nap today I made a few things.  She is still eating fruit purees since she won't touch any form of fruit with a ten foot pole.  So I made some pear puree today.  I also made a batch of my moms pumpkin cookies which are super easy.  I figured I could try those with Olivia since it is only a carrot cake mix and a can a pumpkin and a few other ingredients- I just skipped the frosting on hers.  She did eat the cookie at dinner though- who wouldn't want to eat one of my mom's cookies!   I also made some banana muffins.  I am not sure if they turned out right... they look weird... but we will see about those.  Ugh I guess I am just frustrated with dinner but I know one person is happy- Jake since he gets most of the crumbs- hey at least one person is happy!

After dinner Brendon had Olivia help him plant 2 tomato plants.  She was a good helper! Now her job is to water them since they are right outside her bedroom.

Peek a boo with mommy

Daddy showing Olivia what to do with the garden tools

This is a tomato plant

Helping

Watering the tomatoes

Daddy showing Olivia how to water them

Giving directions

It's okay daddy I will let you use my watering can!