Where or Where Did Our Baby Go?

I swear Olivia is going through a growth spurt, and I don't mean in regards to her height and weight! Her vocabulary, her interests, and her abilities are growing exponentially. She has started forming 2 word sentences when she talks to you and a lot of what she says is very understandable. She is almost going up and down the stairs in the house totally on her own. She even holds on to the railing as she concentrates on the steps. Here are a few pictures shoing the other ways she has grown.

Olivia really enjoys coloring...

...we are working on her grip (which is typical at this age)...

...and coloring on the paper! The faint marks you see is what she did to the countertop. Good thing they are washable crayons!

Here is Olivia standing next to her crib. Her crib is a convertible crib, so it will change from a crib to a day bed to a full size bed.

Chris and I decided it was time to turn her crib into the day bed. Here Olivia is showing Papa where the rail needs to go.

Next, she got to help Papa screw the new bolts into the side rail.

Olivia climbed up into her "new" bed to see how it works.

She has done well with her "new" bed. We put pillows on the floor just in case she rolls out. It has been 2 days since we have made this change, and she hasn't rolled out yet. I love this "new" bed because now when she wakes up in the morning she doesn't lay there and cry waiting for me to come in. She calls, "Mama" over and over until I come in her room. I just love seeing that smiling face sitting there every morning!

And now, Olivia is also showing interest in using the potty. Three times now, she has gotten us to set her on the toilet as if she wanted to go to the bathroom. So, last night we bought her her own potty. Right now she is just sitting on it with her clothes on, but at least she is becoming familiar with what this is for. I have a feeling we will start training soon.

Olivia is so proud of herself that she is clapping!

We are proud of her too...No more baby, but a growing toddler!

An Afternoon at the Beach

Today was supposed to be a very hot and humid day with a heat index reaching 100. I don't know if we really reached a heat index of 100, but I do know that it was extremely humid and windy. What better place to go on a hot, humid day in summer than the beach? My friend, Kendra, and her 2 girls drove over for the afternoon so we all could head to Lake Michigan. Our intention was to go to the State Park in Grand Haven. That didn't work out. We were 3 cars away from getting into the park, when they shut the park. It was full! Never in all the years we have lived in West Michigan have I ever seen the beach that packed. Now to be fair, on hot, humid, and muggy days I tend to hole up in my air conditioned house and venture back outside when the weather becomes more civilized! Our bigger question now was where are we going to go? We hit Lakeshore Drive and made our way to Holland. On the way, we came to Kirk Park and thought we would try our luck there. Luckily we were able to get in. They were allowing one new car in as one car would be leaving. We unpacked our car and started our trek towards the beach. It was definitely worth the wait to get in and the long walk down to the beach. The girls had so much fun!

This was Olivia's first chance to actually play and get wet at the beach!

Here she tries to step over the wave herself.

Olivia loved sitting in the water and letting the waves crash right into her.

The other thing Olivia really seemed to enjoy was watching her feet sink in the sand as the waves crashed back and forth on the shoreline.

Our little ham playing in the sand.

While we were grilling hotdogs for dinner, the girls found a hole that someone else created and really enjoyed playing in it until the dogs were ready.

Nothing like a little sand with your hotdog!

What better way to end a wonderful day than with a rainbow?

How about a double rainbow?

If you look to the left of the rainbow, you can faintly see the second rainbow.

It was a great way to finish out our fun day!