Time Flies

Nine months ago today, Little Miss Olivia graced the world with her presence and change my life forever.

A week past my due date and two days of labor later, Olive came by way of a C-section (none of this was in my plan).

Olivia's first photo with Mommy and Daddy.

From the day she was born, it has been rare for her NOT to have an opinion on something. She had a distinct personality from day one. Strong willed, joyful, stubborn, silly, determined and loving.

About six months before getting pregnant with Olivia, I had gotten pregnant with another child but miscarried before making it to my second trimester.

To say I was devastated would be an enormous understatement. I was broken. There was nothing I could have done to prepare myself for the feeling of loss that took over every inch of my body.

Thank God for my husband, my family and my friends. But, most of all my husband. He was my rock, and through the next few tough months, he helped me heal. The miscarriage changed me for the worst, it made me a person I didn’t know and didn’t like. The support, humor, encouragement and love of the hubby was truly what got me back to myself.

The hubby and me.

Shortly after starting to feel like myself again, we found out I was pregnant. Along with the excitement came the fear of losing another baby. Because of that I cherished the vomiting, the aches, the big belly and the sleeplessness from a very active daughter who liked to run marathons at night. (I was however MORE THAN ready for her arrival when she finally made her debut).

Fast forward nine months, and I still almost can’t believe I’m blessed enough to have such a wonderful baby girl.

For every ornery, sassy moment, there have been so many more full of snuggles and wet baby kisses. For every fit, there have been so many more wonderful firsts – smiling, laughing, rolling, sitting, clapping, waving and so on. And for every night she’s barely slept a wink, there have been multiple nights I’ve gotten to watch her sleeping peacefully. Olivia has been and always will be my angel baby.

Happy three-quarters-of-a-year birthday to my little ladybug. Looking forward to what the next few months and lifetime have to bring.

Stuff. Lots and lots of stuff.

When I was prego, it was kind of cute that as the size of my belly grew, so did the amount of baby stuff added to our home.

The closer it got to baby-day, the harder it was to go into any store that sold anything and NOT buy something that I was sure my little bundle of joy couldn't possibly live without. Itsy bitsy pink shoes - check. Frilly socks - check. Miniature-sized hippie skirt - check. Diapers, wipes, furniture, bottles, ridiculous number of other baby necessities - check, check, double check.

In the almost nine months since little Miss Olive moved in, the stuff has continued to take over. From tummy time toys to crawling aids, a jumperoo and learn-to-walk assistants, our living room has become a virtual Toys R Us. We've added colorful baskets and bins and a bookcase to help contain the toy explosion, all of which have saved the hubby and myself from being buried alive.

Today, we made another move toward containing stuff that we anticipate will continue our way.

As it is, we have a tiny freezer - so tiny you can't even fit a family-size frozen pizza inside.

So today, we hit up Lowe's - where the baby girl was mesmerized by the massive number of ceiling fans - and I'm happy to say that come Sunday, we'll have an additional freezer/fridge for storage.

It's nothing fancy, but it will be such a huge help. (Our new fridge/freezer) Now that Olive is old enough to enjoy things like mini toaster waffles and (whether she enjoys it or not) eat cooked frozen veggies, it will be great to buy a few things when they're on sale and be able to keep them on hand when she wants them rather than feeling like I have to run to the grocery daily to pick up something to use right away. And I'm sure it will be more and more helpful as the little one moves into the world of chicken nuggets, and as more little ones join our family in the future.

Who knew a 9-month-old would inspire the purchase of a major kitchen appliance?

Our new fridge/freezer! I would not have guessed 10 years ago that I'd be THIS excited about the purchase of a Frigidaire from Lowe's. Reminds me of the Old School line about having a "pretty nice little Saturday" at Home Depot.