Olivia's First Halloween!

It was exciting to celebrate Olivia's first real holiday.  (Columbus day doesn't count!)  We had lots of fun shopping for a costume for her and imagining her as various adorable things.  Finally, we settled upon a dinosaur costume because it was really cute, and because we call her little grunts and coos 'dinosaur noises.'  So, prepare to meet Dino Gal!

She even has seasonal socks to keep her feet warm, Trick-or-Treating was cold!

We loved the padded belly and bum in this costume!

Olivia went trick-or-treating with some of her baby friends.  Grant was a robot (his dad made a really cool costume with circuitry that lit up) and Mason was a lobster.  It was really cold and rainy, but she did go to a few houses and get some candy.  Unfortunately, she's too little to have any, so we had to eat it all ourselves.



We were really excited to carve Olivia's pumpkin with her, and Bob's aunts Anna and Arla came over for the occasion.  We waited until she woke up from her nap, hoping that she would be excited and happy, but we couldn't have been more wrong!

We're tried to get Olivia to play with the pumpkin guts.

But she found that very boring.

One more try?  She still wasn't happy about the whole situation.

Cassandra took over the jack-o-lanterning.  Notice Olivia slumping over in exhaustion.

She might have been enjoying it too much.  Bob had a hard time watching her, he thought she was going to stab someone.

By the time the pumpkin was carved, she was completely out.

Despite our best efforts, she wouldn't wake up, but we got her to pose with the pumpkin anyway!

Well, that's it for our Halloween festivities, it was a pretty low-key year, but we all enjoyed it.  Olivia has turned into such a fun little baby.  She's developing a really cute and sweet personality.  She was being super fun one morning this week, so we had a little photoshoot.

She likes holding this rattle, though you have to help her pick it up.  Sometimes she'll hit herself on the head with it.

With her big eyes and baby mow-hawk, we think she looks like a kewpie doll!

Tummy Time!  She likes being on her belly for about five minutes.  Then she lays down and cries.

We can't believe that she's almost two months old, my how time flies!

We still swaddle her up for sleeping at night...

...but sometimes she wiggles loose!  One night we came in and she had wiggled her feet and her hand out of the swaddle and turned on her side, squirmy girl.  It was really cute.

She is getting more demanding for attention.  She doesn't like to be left alone in a room, even when in her swing or bouncy chair, even for a second!  So we put her in our bathroom when we're getting ready in the morning and she's content to stare.

This week Cassandra and Olivia went to the aquarium with Aunt Michelle and Cousin Logan (Olivia's only cousin!).  She slept through most of it, including the octopus who painted a picture.  But one day she'll be running from tank to tank yelling "Fish! Fish!" with her cousin Logan.

Olivia and her mom cozying up to watch a movie after a long day of playing.

Olivia is such a joy. She recognizes us, and perks right up when Bob gets home from work, though she's still happy to be held by anyone.  Everyone is jealous of our baby, she eats so well, sleeps through the nights most of the time, and is really good-natured.  She's been really healthy, and hopefully she remains so through the cold and flu season!

Coming up next week:  Her 2-month birthday and doctor's checkup.  Is she growing as fast as it seems to us?

Happy Birthday Mom!

Olivia is growing like a weed!  We feel like everyday she is getting chubbier and longer, not to mention heavier!  She is also getting more wiggly and more interactive every day.  She laughed at Cassandra for the first time this week (and the second and the third times), and it was the most adorable thing ever!  When she's doing it more often, we'll have to try and catch it on video.

Olivia finally made it through her first Sacrament Meeting!  She has previously decided that Elders Quorum and Sunday School are ok, but Sacrament Meeting is way too dull....  It probably helped that she was drinking a bottle during half of it, but still we were proud of her.  Maybe it was because we were visiting Nana (Formerly known as Grandma Lisa) and Papa (formerly known as Grandpa Dean)'s ward, and she wanted to impress the new babies!

We had to sit in the back for a possible early escape!

This week was Cassandra's birthday, and Olivia was excited to be in on the celebrations!

Olivia wonders, "Why am I wearing this hat?!"

Unfortunately, little Liv is too young for a chocolate cupcake!

To celebrate both Cassandra's birthday, and Bob's return from Europe, everyone went out for a morning hike to Dog Lake.  It was a short one, but still it was Olivia's first substantial hike, and we think she enjoyed it, though it was chilly!  The weather was great, and the scenery was fantastic, everyone had a great time.

Bob carrying Olivia.

She stayed nice and cosy cuddled next to Dad with her cute hat!

We took her out of her carrier at the top to stretch her legs and watch the dogs swim.  She doesn't love the direct sunlight!

Maggie, our lab, loves to swim and fetch sticks.

Olivia and Cassandra, hanging out on the banks of Dog Lake.

Earlier in the week, we also went to Wheeler Historical Farm to check out the animals and the Halloween decorations.  Bob was out of town for this trip, so the only picture available of Cassandra and Olivia is a self-portrait!

Olivia is in her carrier.

This group of angry geese chased us while honking and hissing.  It was actually pretty scary.

What a sweet little girl she is!

We're getting excited for Halloween and the Holiday Season.  Not to promise too much, but Olivia may - or may not - already have a Halloween costume and may - or may not - already be plotting her trick or treating route.  

Olivia Goes On a Trip

Bob has resumed travelling, leaving Olivia and I (Cassandra) to fend for ourselves.  We had an interesting couple of days watching chick flicks and having pillow fights and playing Truth or Dare.  Then we decided that we were bored and needed to go on a road trip!  We traveled to Logan to see Grandma Lisa and Papa (the man formerly known as Grandpa Dean) and Uncle Chet!

We forgot her stuffed animal, so you'll have to use your imagination for comparisons.  We did weigh her on our scale at home though, and she weighs almost 11 pounds!

Olivia was really excited to be leaving the house.  Road trip!

Uncle Chet and Olivia hanging out.

Papa decided he would try out Olivia's binkie.  I think he found it enjoyable!

 With Grandma Lisa around, we got a lot of great pictures.  She's a great photographer!  Also, it's nice to have an extra pair of hands around to grab the camera.  So you'll have to forgive our hundreds of pictures and lack of writing this week!

We took a trip to the Farmer's Market.

We bought Olivia her first pumpkin.  She can't wait to carve it.

To be completely honest, she slept through most of the market visit.

Papa enjoyed feeding her!

She loves her pumpkin.

Now she's all ready for Halloween!  We went out and bought her a costume, but you'll have to wait until Halloween to see it, it's a surprise!

She thinks it's hilarious when you touch her nose.

We had a very successful visit to Logan (we're actually still up here), and we will be glad to see Bob when he gets back from his world travels!

Papa is a videographer, and he threw together a little video from our trip.  It turned out really cute, we hope you'll enjoy it!