Livy just can't...

keep it quiet any longer! :)


Yes, it's true. Livy will be a big sister soon! We just went to the doctor yesterday, and the official word is June 8. I am, however, hoping for an earlier appearance. :) Livy is convinced it's a girl and says that "I just don't like little boys". Uh oh. I told her that the baby would be whatever God wanted to give us. She responded, very seriously, with "Hmmmm, I think He's going to give us a girl!" Ha! I'm feeling pretty lousy right now, but the doc gave me some good drugs yesterday and that seems to be helping.

So that's the excitement here. :)

I'm not dead...

just really ticked off now. I just spent AT LEAST 30 minutes loading pictures and writing captions and updating on everything we've done since June. And it's gone. All gone. Arghhhhh......

Daddy's Day!

Yes, I am holding a bird. Don't have a heart attack, dear readers. :) There was a thing at the Tulsa Zoo called "Feather Fest" where you could go in and feed parakeets, finches, and parrots. I managed to not have an anxiety attack inside. Livy liked the birds, but she didn't understand why she couldn't pet them. There was a hose mister inside, and Livy was more interested in that. It was so hot! Wes chose to go to the zoo for Father's Day, so we headed over to Tulsa after church. We also go to eat at Jason's Deli! Yum!!

First pigtails! How cute is that? :)
Livy drew these pictures all by herself and then she told me what they were! I think they're pretty darn good. And imaginative, to boot.

All ready to go swimming at Nanny and Papaw's house.



Some more zoo pictures. This penguin was a baby, we think, born at the end of January. He (or she?) was very playful. Livy really enjoyed the penguins and sea lions.

First ponytail

She finally has enough hair for a real ponytail at the back of her head. How cute is it?? She looks like such a big girl with her hair pulled back like this.

Attitude with a capital "A"

Yes, Livy definitely has one. I'm exhausted trying to keep her in line sometimes. We'll figure it out, I'm sure. Or we'll be on SuperNanny in a few years. (My money's on SuperNanny, to tell you the truth!) :)
Anyway, here are some newer pictures. No videos lately, sorry. Livy is currently obsessed with: Clifford, shoes (imagine that!), going potty by herself (no longer allowed since she unrolled an entire roll of TP), helping Mommy and Daddy with anything and everything, WiiFit (as in "Are you gonna do WiiFit now, Mom?), boobies ("My boobies are small. But they'll get bigger!" Ha!), curling up with a blanket and a movie.


Happy Birthday, Beep Beep! Livy picked out those feather balls for him. She's really into presents for others right now. However, she then always says "What we gonna get for me?" :)











Yes, she double-fists her drinks. :)

Slight picture of the offending mermaid flip-flops. Also currently loving Bambi.























Fun at the Botanical Gardens with Daddy.


















I left her watching "101 Dalmatians". When I came back (just a few minutes later!), she was like this. Cutie pie!

Slave to fashion...

As you may or may not know, the Disney store at the mall is closing. Last week, Livy convinced Nanny to buy her some Ariel flip-flops. Livy has never been one for the flip-flop shoe, as she does not like the thing between her toes (and she has kinda chubby toes). However, she assured Nanny that she liked them and even tried them on in the store. The same day, I bought her some lime green Croc-type shoes at The Children's Place. My shoes, sadly, were the losers of the day. Not for long, though. :) Here's the conversations we have had about the two pairs lately... The first was on Wednesday afternoon, the second was today as we were about to leave for church.

Me: Livy, do you want to wear the mermaid shoes or the green shoes?
Livy: The mermaid ones.
Me: Are you sure?
Livy: Yes, the mermaid ones.
(We then go outside and start to water the plants. After about 2 minutes, the conversation resumes...)
Livy: Mom, I need go inside and change shoes.
Me: Livy, can you wait until I'm done watering the flowers?
Livy: No, these hurt my feet. I shoulda wore the geen ones...

Livy (holding up her Ariel flip-flops): Mom, is it okay if I wear these?
Me: Well, I thought you said they hurt your feet...
Livy: Yeah, but I can probly wear them anyway.

Ha! How funny is that? She also saw some "jelly" shoes tonight and wanted them. I said, "No, they'll hurt your feet." All I could think of was my wanting jelly shoes and my mom saying the EXACT same thing to me. The circle of life, huh? ;)

Oh.My.Goodness.

Here's how it went down:
-I'm in the office, Livy is watching a Care Bears movie (or so I think)
-I hear the toilet flush upstairs.
-I think, "Oh my gosh, she just flushed something down the toilet which does not go there."
-Then I think, "Oh my gosh, there's someone in the house!"
-I head upstairs where I can hear the toilet running.
-Livy is naked from the waist down, trying to get her panties and pants back on.
-I said, "Did you just use the potty ALL BY YOURSELF?!"
-Livy looks at me like I'm crazy and says, "Yes, I'm a big girl now."

Wow, she certainly is a big girl now!

On another note, Wes and I left her all night for the first time this weekend. Of course, she was fine. :) Big step for us, though!

Mommy's Day!

We had a good Mommy's Day weekend. The three of us went to the Oklahoma Aquarium on Sunday (and ate at Jason's Deli!). Livy liked the sharks and the shark tunnel the best. She also enjoyed touching the starfish at the tide pool petting exhibit- I think she would have stayed there all day! Livy's playhouse is coming along, I think it's taking longer than they expected. Livy's still pretty excited about it and about inviting her friends over to play in it. :) Current obsessions (mostly related to the pictures): opossums (there was one in our yard not too long ago, she then convinced Nanny to buy her one!), temporary tattoos, rain and getting inside before it rains, playing shopping, Jackson (two of them- her cousin and Megan 's son), Aubrey from school, going to the doctor, painting, "Robin Hood" cartoon, Nemo (just the character, not the movie), having friends over, decorating sugar cookies, gardening, and ice cream (pink, blue, or orange only). I never dreamed that having a child would be so entertaining! The three of us went to the Community Imagination Studio a few weeks ago- it was great! If you haven't been and your kids like artsy stuff, check it out.

Come into my house!

Wes and his dad are in the process of building a play house for Livy! She is so excited; she keeps saying "You want to come into my house?" Cute! It's pretty large, larger than I had expected. I'm just not one for picturing things in my head. I'll try to get a "work in progress" pic up soon. Livy and I had our picture in the paper on Saturday. On the front page of the NWA section of the Dem-Gazette, no less! A photographer came up to us at the library on Friday and asked if he could hang out with us and take some pictures. Livy was in rare form, all smiles, giggles, and "oohhhh"s and "aaahhhh"s. It was pretty exciting. :)

Here is a list of her current obsessions: playing Noah's Ark (come on animals, it's rainin'!), rolling her eyes and saying "Oh, gate!" (Oh, great), temporary tattoos, saying "no" to Mom and Dad, grandparents and what they are doing right now, Aubrey (her best friend at school), "101 Dalmatians" movie, Cruella DeVil (who she seems to think is nice!), playing school with her stuffed animals, and going to church.

For some reason, I can't upload pictures right now. I'll try again later!

I'm in love

with my new Swiffer Sweep 'N' Vac! If you don't have one and hate using a broom/dustpan, you should definitely get one! It's on sale for $26.99 at Target right now... :)

Easter fun

We had a big Easter weekend. On Saturday morning, we went to church for an Easter Egg Hunt, breakfast, and PROTO show. Livy especially liked the bunny in the PROTO show; she kept waving at him and saying "Hi bunny!" :) The two and three-year-olds were grouped together and hunted eggs in the nursery playground. Livy did an excellent job hunting, if I do say so myself!

After the hunt at church, we went down to Wes' parents' house to celebrate Easter and Uncle Sam's birthday. Livy and Jackson had a great time hunting eggs, feeding fish, and petting/feeding chickens.

On Easter Sunday, we went to church in the morning. After that, we went to the Clarion with my parents to eat lunch. Livy went with my mom to pay after we ate, and there was a harpist playing by the register. They came back to the table and Livy said, "I want to see the princess!" We finally figured out that she meant the harpist. Livy was just mesmerized by her; the harpist was nice enough to let Livy touch her harp, too. After lunch, we tried (unsuccessfully) to get Livy to take a nap. Then we went to my parents' house for an egg hunt. My mom brought back confetti eggs from South Texas. They are made of real eggshells that have been blown out and washed. They are then filled with confetti. So you're supposed to break them and then throw the confetti. How fun! We tried to break one on my head, but it was too tough. Ouch! Livy had a great time.

He's soooo biiiiiiggggg....

We went to the Jones Center yesterday to see Clifford the Big Red Dog (who is, incidentally, voiced by John Ritter on the show). Livy was terrified and wouldn't go near him. It was Santa all over again. I think she was distressed because Clifford could not talk. I've been pushing for a trip to Disney World before Livy turns 3 because she gets in free, but I think I'm going to have to let that go now. :( Livy and Wes had some art time yesterday, also. They were sponge painting and it somehow turned into painting themselves!

The only character she would go near- Baby Bop. And we've NEVER even watched Barney! Weird.

Check out the arm on that girl!!

After a paint fight with Daddy. Took a while to clean up those two. :)

Livy does not like paint on her face!

Seeing herself after the paint fight.

So tired...

So, Livy got up at 4:30 today. Woo! And it's raining. And we're going to the Jones Center at noon to eat a picnic with Clifford the Big Red Dog. I'm assuming it's going to be an indoor picnic. On the bright side, she did take a nap yesterday. And as a result, she was in a good mood all afternoon. This is radically different from the past two weeks. She is refusing to nap and is cranky, ornery (what a southern word!), and likes to act up. Time-outs have been plentiful. :) I'll try to post some pics of her with Clifford later today.

Livy, Livy, Bo-Bivy

Here are some newer pictures and videos of Livy. I'm organizing everything today. :)

This is Olivia and our friend Jackson (Megan's son) at the park this week. How cute is this??

Ha ha, Daddy! You look funny in my glasses!!

Here's Wes putting Livy in the "spin cycle"! She loves it, such a little daredevil! :)

Can you spot the physics in this picture?? :)

Swimming with Nanny and Papaw in Mexico, Sept 07. (Nanny will probably be mad at me for putting this on here, but it's sooooo cute!)

Long trip and snow day

Well, I was gone for three days/four nights this weekend. I went to the PTEC (Physics Teacher Education Coalition, for the uninitiated!) and co-presented a workshop. It was the second time I have been to the conference, but my first time to do a workshop (1 1/2 hours!). It went well, I just find it very hard to be away from home. It's nice to go somewhere that everyone speaks the same language (physics ed research language), but difficult to leave home. I also am co-coordinator of HS Physics Day, which is this Friday. So that made the trip a bit more stressful, knowing I had a ton of work to do before then. The trip home was horrid, and I came within a few people of having to spend the night in Dallas b/c my flight was cancelled and they almost couldn't get me on the last one out. Ugh.

We had a snow day today, so no school for Livy. I hate when she misses, it's just that much of an adjustment when she goes back now. Ah well, the snow was pretty! :)

Here are some recent pics. The snowy ones are from last snow, in February. I'll post a video of Wes rolling Livy in the clothes basket soon. That is what happens when I go to work! :) Enjoy!

First Lady'Back basketball game! Thanks Aunt Sheri and Uncle Jeff!!

Decorating cookies on Valentine's Day.
Gymnastics!! She's getting a lot braver.
Big girl bed in big girl room.
Big girl room again. Those are some of the repositionable decals- pretty cool!