so, if you guys follow me on instagram, you might know by now that my little miss olive is a brand rep for stitches and soles! we are soooo excited for this! alena’s moccs are amaze. they are well made {super sturdy}, have that awesome hidden elastic {it makes it sooo easy to put on the babes and stay on!}, and they come in the most wonderful colors! a whole rainbow of goodness to choose from!
we are very excited to rep her shop. like, beyond thrilled. i am very thankful and grateful that she chose little miss olive rep.rep.represent! we have been a fan of her moccs for awhile. i eyed them for a bit last year and then finally broke down and bought a pair…it took me awhile to get them on her feet because she pretty much went barefoot all summer long, and then we finally dressed her up in her moccs and it was nothing but pure love since then. *sigh*
alright, down below are two out of her four styles that she offers. my favorite are the fringe moccasins. they are classic, cute, and really do add sass to any outfit that my little one one wears! i also love the sequin moccs and the bow styles, they are all so adorbs and fun.
styling olive in fun outfits to go with the moccs is the best part! who doesn’t love to dress up, ham it up for the camera, and capture some awesome memories?! me! me! me!
[sugar plum leather moccs]
[love those chunky thighs and the latte bow moccs]
[latte bow moccs, heart leg warmers, jcrew dress || on sale!, zara scarf, and hair bow headband by her awesome aunties]
so, last but not least, because we love her moccasins and we love you…you can get 10% off her moccasins! yes, you read that right. just go to her site at stitches and soles and use the code OLIVE10 to get your discount! tell your friends and spread the word! these moccasins are fabulous for your little ones, as gifts for soon to be mommies, the list goes on and on. these moccs are too cute not to have!
so us goofy gals {okay, olive has no choice || right now|| but to be a goofy gal with me} decided to coordinate our p.j.’s in celebration of valentine’s day!
yes, corny me is getting excited for valentine’s day! i’ve been thinking a lot about what to do, what to make, when to decorate {i am hoping i have the time to squeeze in some fun stuff…it’s so precious lately}. i’m a fan of this upcoming holiday…it’s a day to celebrate love, love for your family, love for your husband, love for your significant other, love for your friends, love for your children, love all around!
alright, lots of mommy and olive pictures coming right up! we had a blast hanging out in our heart p.j.’s for the day {well, really for the evening}. i love coordinating our outfits but it’s a once in a blue moon kind of thing. i’m into that idea {love it} but i’m not into the dedication, time, and effort! i only wish i could sit around all day and think, coordinate, and buy outfits that matchy matchy. shyeah right. i’d rather put an effort in to get creative with her ensemble but sometimes that is a fail! so, typically for special occasions, i’ll whip together a cute twinnie outfit of the day.
[what am i doing in this photo? i’m not sure…chillaxin’…being pensive, or just waiting for miss olive to return to me so we can snap more pics?!]
[so sweet]
[she looks so much like her auntie kim in this photo!]
i hoped you enjoyed our twinnie outfit of the day! olive was somewhat cooperative. she’s a babes on the move, as of late. getting her to snap some decent photos is a complete challenge! i’d say we were quite successful…i’m loving our heart pajama session. anyhoo, on that note, i love valentine’s day and can’t wait to celebrate it.
anything a baby does is adorable, right? anything your baby does is out.of.this.world!!! so, watching olive dance almost caused me to explode with joy. olive’s first time dancing was too cute for words {seriously}. she boogied down like a free little spirit. she was with her cousins and aunties, playing in the basement with her new christmas toys {courtesy of the aforementioned}. music was playing and everyone was dancing around; olive watched, took cues and started stepping with the rest of them!
it was so stinkin’ delightful! her chubby little cheeks, her skinny little legs {albeit her thighs}, and her fluffy hair bouncing around was cuteness overload! i die. i couldn’t stop watching it…{well, honestly i can’t ever stop watching any of her videos or her}.
oh, how i love her. she amazes us everyday and brings us so much joy. babies are the best. the first year was so full of big milestones but this past month was just as jam packed! more teeth, more cuddling, more words, more quirky personality traits coming though. it blows my mind how she listens and understands. i’ll tell her to shut the door and she does. i’ll tell her to kiss her daddy goodnight and she will walk right over to him and give him a peck on the lips. i tell her to stop or no and she immediately regresses. i tell her to grab her bunny and she will walk into the next room and come back with her favorite blankie bunny {so cute!}. i tell her to knock on the door and she obliges. now if she would only listen when i tell her to stop crying! ha! 😉
anyhoo, here’s my bebe in full swing. she’s got some moves! please sit back, relax, and enjoy her dancing tootsies!
oh my, the first real snow of the season! it has snowed here or there {it’s actually snowed a lot of days the past few months but a very light dusting every time} but it has never really stuck around. it started early morning and kept on going throughout the day {tapering off early afternoon}.
i was so excited! i wanted olive to be outside to experience it! last year she was just a newborn {and the polar vortex was awful}, so i kept her far, far away from it all. it was just so darn cold.
well, it was pretty cold outside on this snowy day but i had to get her out! it was so beautiful out. we dressed her in layers and gleefully went outside to watch her first experience in the snow. hc put her down and she started walking around and around, staring down at the snow with the cutest smile on her face. it was so presh. so, around and around she went, occasionally looking up at us with a smirk and continuing to walk all around the driveway. we were just waiting for that moment she would lose her balance! she did quite well! she currently walks like she’s always drunk {she stumbles a lot and always falls walking on the most even of floors} and she was a champion trudging through the snow and the bumpy ground.
i didn’t put her gloves on because i wanted to see if she would touch the snow and her reaction {i know, i know…it was cold but she was literally out there for less than 5 minutes}. well, she did eventually kerplunk into the snow and she was so bewildered at the coldness! she immediately scrunched her face and was not happy. we swept her up, ran inside our toasty warm house to brush her off and she transformed back into her happy self.
[ready to experience the fluffy white snow]
[fresh snow]
[catching snowflakes on the tongue]
[annnnd we’re down]
it was pretty awesome to have her experience her first snowfall {literally}. yay to olive’s firsts. happy snow day.
{insert sad face} my last monthly post about olive’s monthly loves. *sniff sniff* it’s been such an amazing year with this little gal and i loved discovering, along with her, all of her favorite little likes and dislikes. children are so amazing. so innocent and loving. they are pure happiness, they live in the moment and have no barriers. that thought breaks and melts my heart at the same time. i would do anything to protect her from this imperfect world but alas it will only make her stronger to experience life’s crazy paths. until then, she just loves her toys and that is all that matters right now! so onto more lighthearted banter!
she received this etchy sketchy thingy on her first birthday. now granted, her interest in items, maybe, last a minute or two but she does love doodling on this contraption. she loves to give it to me, i’ll write something on it and then she will yank it away {like how dare i enjoy her toy!}, and then she will give it back to me so i can draw on it again. she usually keeps up this cycle for a few minutes until she wants to grab another toy and give it to me.
auntie missy gave this wood puzzle to her. she does enjoy it. she loves to whip all the pieces of the puzzle onto the floor and never put them back. yay! so i place all the shapes into their respective homes and then she whips them back onto the floor! woo! although, i think the puzzle toy is haunted. the animals just randomly make sounds when no one is near! and we ‘lost’ the cat piece, so the cat meows and meows and meows. sometimes in the middle of the night, the cat will howl out from the wood puzzle. eerie.
olive received this wood alligator from andrea! it’s so cute! it bounces it’s behind when you pull it along. click clack click clack . i love plan toys and, as always, i love wood toys! the colors of this toy are catching for olive’s eyes and she loves to pull it along the floor. she has a great time with it!
oh my goodness. olive really, really loves this book. she loves to pull the tabs back on each page to reveal the animal picture, even before i finish each sentence! the colors are so rich and vivid on each page; and i love to make each animal noise for olive so she can understand and relate. it’s currently her favorite book, unfortunately it’s so heavy! she cries every time she picks it up and brings it over to me. she will typically drop it twice before i come over to rescue her from it.
she received this chair from gramma and papa for her first birthday and it’s her absolute favorite. she loves to sit in it and chill. she will cuddle with her bunny blankie, or brown bear, or her pink bear while she watches t.v. it’s so cute to see her sit in her chair like a grown up! her big sister loves it just as much and they always have a little showdown on who will sit in the chair! olive always trumps this one!
her new favorite thing? cars, anything with wheels, anything she can push and roll around the house with. whether it’s a wooden car, a big plastic four wheeler, or a shopping cart, she’ll push that thing around until she can’t push no more! she absolutely loves to be pushed around as well and that can be trouble! it’s soooo tiring to push her around, she wants more and more and we are so old and tired! she gets so upset when we stop but i get so out of breath and exhausted…so my family and i will take turns to push that little princess around.
there ya go! the ‘last’ of olive’s monthly loves! oh, how bittersweet. we look forward to olive’s future loves {a post here or there about her growing favorites!} and her soon to be big girl ways! our little babes is getting so big and independent already, slow yer roll baby doll, slow yer roll!
many weeks ago was the first time in a looooong time since olive was introduced into this world, that i didn’t have her.
there were two times prior: one night when we were celebrating my sister thuy’s birthday, we left her overnight at my parents. that was nerve racking. c’mon…i’m a new mommy. every momma goes through that, right? the first time leaving your babes…you can’t help but have a little anxiety! i completely trusted my parents {it would not have been anyone else!}, but you do have your jitters, naturally. we were already out by my parents and it just made sense {logistically} to go back to the city and stay in the city without the babes and then come back the next day to get her. so, of course, that was a success and totally fine. olive was a happy camper.
the other time was when we moved into our house. i dropped olive off at my parent’s house so i could get some work done {aka cleaning} in our new house. this time around wasn’t as long. it was for maybe 5-6 hours, while i pretty much spent the entire time cleaning the dirty fridge {yuck}.
so, those were the two times prior and since then…it’s always been me and olive, like always!
i had a week of time off and my parent’s typically watch her on designated days. well, i decided i would let them have her and i would get to do things and get things done! it was, honestly, the weirdest feeling. i felt free but lonely at the same time.
i am racked with momma’s guilt when i’m without my babes {totes normal, right?!}. i know, i should have time to myself. i should feel good that i have a me day but i can’t help it! it is rewarding to be able to have a day to myself, or an afternoon. i can get stuff done, i can relax without it being interrupted, i can focus on projects without worries but i do miss her. i do. don’t get me wrong, i will go out without her. i will have someone else care for her so i can go shopping, do errands, or meet up with friends for lunch. i do get excited for such things and do enjoy the moments, even though it’s rare.
no matter what, i will always love sharing every second with my presh lil one. it will always be an internal war within me. maybe when she’s older, i might feel better or different? maybe it’s because she’s so tiny and i am relishing in all her cuteness? maybe it’s because she brings me such joy, so not having her by my side makes me sad? maybe it’s because she gives me hugs and kisses and it always makes me smile?
i know a lot of people are quick to give up their kids to have a day to themselves but it’s not the same for me. i do love having date nights with hc or if it is just me and the hubs without olive, i’m okay. it’s the only time i am ok with it. otherwise, i don’t foresee a ton of days or times i will be out and about without my olive.
well, i’ll let y’all know if any of my emotions changes in the next few months or years 😉 until then, the internal battle of feelings still rages inside…one day, i’ll have a day without the little babes and totally feel liberated! 🙂
so, to top off this past fabulous year of life, we had olive’s pictures taken to celebrate her one year birthday! we have been going to patricia anderson photography since olive was in the womb! so, to have her capture olive’s one year mark was a no brainer.
it was just me and olive, hc was away on a business trip {he’s been at every session leading up to this one}. it was a good morning. olive was on track with her meals and nap but as usual, i was running just a wee bit behind. we then headed out to the city, everything was looking good until i hit the kennedy! ugh. it was so backed up but i wasn’t too worried. i was still on track to being 15 minutes late 😉 then this happened: barry {street} was under construction. what?! i had planned on parking right on barry, we always do…there is always a spot. but nope. not this time. i drove around and around trying to find a spot! of course, it had to be the day i go by ‘myself’ and have a whole bunch of props with me!!! if hc was with us, he would have dropped us off and it would have been easy peasy. so, i finally found a parking spot {quickly pulled the stroller together and grabbed our props} and hauled us at lightening speed to the studio.
i was carrying balloons, outfit changes for olive, her crown, banners, pushing her stroller, and fighting the wind as i flew through the streets of chicago. i finally made it! phew! tricia was worried we were going to be very, very late but we did it!
we got inside and got cracking on her photos. the first shots were of her in her cutesy zara outfit. you can’t really tell in the pics but the dress is this beautiful brocade. annnddd as i expected, olive was not amused. she gets uncomfortable and very confused {when the environment is foreign}, and when she feels that way, she clings to her momma! she then gets that serious face on that pretty little mug and won’t smile.
as the session led on, she was getting super cozy and comfy and started to lighten up. she then started to become a ham! woo, when she gets comfortable i then start to relax.
[dress & leggings by zara // gold bow hair clip by pink toast boutique]
[custom romper and headband // love her ‘not impressed’ look]
we did four outfit changes {tricia even had a custom yellow romper made for olive’s photo shoot!} and saved the best for last! her smash cake event! i was so excited, i don’t think olive had a clue what she was in for, or me, really! we dressed her up in her crown, tutu, hung her banners, and placed the balloons. it all looked oh so cute!
at first, she didn’t know what to do. i had to help her by sticking my finger in the cake and getting the frosting on her lips. she then smooshed her hand onto the cake and didn’t like it at first {she is so my child}. she didn’t like that her hand was dirty! she kept trying to get me to wipe off her hand…that’s my girl! but then she started to taste it and, boy, she started to like it! then the cake smashing craziness took over. she even used her foot to kick the cake…lol.
well, there you go! olive’s one year photos are complete and we were soooo happy with the end results. tricia does such an amazing job and she is so incredibly calm and great with olive. we love working with her…every time, our photos turn out absolutely perfect!!
oh my oh my oh my! our baby girl is one year old!!! whaaaa?! already?! i’ve always thought about this day, i’ve always thought about her birthday party {so daunting & it turned out perfect!}, i have always thought about what she would be like at one year…and here we are. all these milestones and moments turned out to be exactly what i expected and also so much more spectacular than what i thought! she is so amazing, funny, sweet, loving, silly, cuddly, and goofy.
olive is so loving! she loves to give kisses and hugs. it just makes your heart melt. those pouty lips and chunky cheeks just get me. every. time. i love to say to olive, “kisses!” and she will lean in for a smack on the lips. she’s so cuddly and oh so loving! she loves to lean in for a hug. she loves to snuggle into my arms. she now likes to lay right by your side and chill. it is seriously so cool. she went from a baby to a little girl with a big personality {slow yer roll!}
olive is a healthy, hearty eater. she loves food. like loves it. she will eat anything you give her. i am hoping that this carries over throughout her childhood. i am an eater. i love food. i love trying new tastes, textures, and flavors. i get so much joy from it and i want olive to be the same. i want her to explore and widen her palate as much as i love it. so, we are off to the right start since baby girl does down anything right now. she loves spicy foods, veggies, fish, meat, fruit, cereals, and cake. yes, lots of cake…just like her momma.
she has been solid in her sleep. she hasn’t graduated to that one big nap a day yet…i think that will be in the near future. but for now, she is still hitting up two naps a day. she does go to bed pretty late {like mom like daughter??} and wakes up at a decent hour {typically around 8am}. she will nap between 10-11am and then take another nap around 4-5pm. i am still amazed that she has been so structured and solid in her sleep patterns since she was 4 weeks old! does that mean our next baby will be a crazy, sporadic sleeper??? olive tends to cry out at midnight every night {it’s like clockwork every night at that time, exactly 2 hours after she goes to bed} but only for a minute or two and falls back asleep. only once this past month did she cry out {around 3am} and didn’t stop for awhile. i got up to console my baby girl back to sleep but that definitely was an anomaly for her.
um, did i mention that she mastered walking?! yes, she finally took that bold step towards craziness. like i said before, i really thought she would be walking by ten months, but eleven months it was. now she is all over the place. it’s too cute. she just wobbles around just to wobble around. she has no purpose. she has no destination. she just walks around and around because she can. it’s so novel for her right now that it amuses me just the same. i love watching her teeter everywhere and giggle at how delighted she is that she is walking! she currently has the goofiest look on her face when she is walking everywhere. it’s way too presh.
well, last month i blogged about her crawling up the stairs {and not knowing how to get down}…she has now mastered ‘crawling’ down the stairs. yup, she is pretty good at it. a little over a week ago, she was going up my parent’s stairs and then she decided that she was going to go down. and down she went with such ease!!! from that moment on, it’s been up and down, up and down any set of stairs.
i am a bit sad because this will be my “last” monthly post of olive. the first year is so important, amazing, and full of delight. it was a fantastic way to document olive’s ever growing status and now it’s come to an end. waaaah. now don’t get me wrong…i will be blogging about olive’s future milestones but it’s bittersweet that this chapter is closing. but ya know what they say…when one door closes, another one opens. natch.
happy one year my dear, sweet olive. we love you to bits and look forward to so many more amazing years ahead. the best is yet to come.
warning: total mom photos coming your way. a.k.a photo overload of pretty much the same thing – baby and me.
when my dear friends carol, dana, and andrea hosted my baby’s shower last year, dana had given me the cutest little sippy cup evah as a gift! i couldn’t wait to use it! i’m such a starbucks addict. yes, i will pay $4.50 or so for a fancy coffee. yeahhhh, a fancy coffee for a fancy lady {what grace used to call me…fancy}.
anyhoo, olive has finally reached an age where she uses a sippy cup. we actually introduced a sippy cup months ago but i finally dug out this ‘starbucks’ cup for her. oh, i was loving it. me with my starbucks cup and her with her version?! i was in heaven. i was gleeful and excited {wow…the simple things in life}. i could not stop snapping photos. i seriously thought it was the cutest thing {well, i still do}.
this was a morning where we had glorious olive and me time. we were loving life and having a grand ol’ time with each other. we snuggled in each other arms. she played independently, i did errands around the house, we would come back together and have more play time and just chill.
well, back to the starbucks moment. when dana gave me this sippy cup…i totally envisioned me and the baby strolling around, outside on a sunny day, starbucks in hand and her sippy ‘starbucks’ cup in her hands. we are enjoying our drinks and loving life. hmph, that will totally still happen but our first moment of bumping starbucks cups was just too perfect!
that was just so cute, non?! thanks dana for the best sippy cup evah! you know me too well {and the le petit prince livre is still my favorite!}. cheers to the daily guzzling of delicious coffee!
so, the day had come…olive’s first birthday party! oh em gee. i was feeling a bit stressed, excited, anxious, and bittersweet. my little babes is about to be one and it makes my heart melt. the first year is so full of many wonderful milestones and memories. each day possesses something new and fun. she is growing up so fast already…i can’t even take it! she amazes us every day; she brings so much joy and laughter into our lives! okaaayyy, so enough mommy gushing…okay, just keeding! i’m always mommy gushing! ha!
anyhoo. preparing for olive’s party was fun, crazy, time consuming, and very obsessive inside my nutty creative mind. i was scheming up so many ideas! i really loved the aesthetic feel of gold and light pink. i’m not a pinky kind of gal, well, okay i am but i’m not into piiiiinkkkk. for example, pink overload…like as if pink was to puke all over olive’s clothes. so not my style. but i was loving the idea of pink, albeit, a light pink {with pops of bright pink} for olive’s first birthday party! how perty it all sounded to me…pink and gold!
so, the day of her party was finally here! i had decorated, crafted, arranged, and tucked in many sleepless nights to get everything done. the guests started to arrive and we were just pulling together the final details of the decor. woooo!
[do you remember this chalkboard?? when we lived in chicago, there was never a place where hc could do any type of wood work or really do any type of reconstruction project. i had always wanted to redo the chalkboard i had purchased and my wish was fulfilled the past month! hc finally deconstructed the chalkboard and framed it in the white border that i had originally wanted!]
[her decorated highchair! // number 1 gold balloon & highchair banner {and most of the banners} by littledovie]
[my favorite…macarons and they were flown in from france!]
[owl treats by the krispie bakery // made especially for o{wl}ive]
[personalized first birthday book by i see me // add extra pages and have your guests sign in by wishing the birthday girl something special!]
[cookie favors by rpconfections and the biggest balloon evah!]
[monthly birthday banner]
[photo booth!]
olive was still napping when our first guests arrived. within a half hour, the guest of honor had arose! i gleefully ran into her room to greet the little babes and get her ready for her big day! i got her dressed, hair styled, and all purty for her party. she was ready to go in her graphic black and white dress, gold glitter tights, and a gold glitter bow hair clip. natch. she looked so cute!
olive and i greeted all our guests, while hc got all the food ready! libations and snacks were out and about, while our guests mingled around and explored. after visiting with our guests for a bit, the food was ready to be served and everyone grabbed a bite to eat. it was great; our guests relaxed, mingled, and enjoyed themselves around the house while olive bounced around amongst different peeps.
hc and i had cleared out the basement and made it a play area for the kiddies and boy, they sure loved it! they had a blast running around and playing downstairs. it was a perfect area for them to go wild!
after lunch and a bit of resting, it was cake time! we changed olive into her second outfit of the day. a birthday crown, ruffled white onesie, and a pink fluffy tutu! we paraded her around for a bit and then plopped her into her chair.
we lit her glitter candle, presented the cake, and sang happy birthday to her! she was so unfazed. she stared at the cake and didn’t know what to do with it! ha! so, i helped her along by poking at the cake and putting a little frosting into her mouth. yes, that got her going. delicious, sweet frosting on the lips will inspire any babes to dive into a big yummy cake!
it was too sweet {literally}. we let the birthday girl sit there and maul her lovely little smash cake, while hc and i sliced up her beautiful gold birthday cake. we served the cake and ice cream on pretty little gold speckled confetti paper plates by merimeri.
after the cake smash fun, olive was given a quick bath and changed into her final outfit of the evening {such a fashionista…three outfit changes on her big day!}! hc dressed olive in the adorbs outfit kt and kar had given her a few months ago!
once the cake was served, all the guests hung out, socialized, and had some super fun with our photo booth! as you can see in all the pics down below!
[mom and thuy]
[lexi and dom]
[yesss, her third outfit change…such a fashionista!]
[auntie kim and olive]
[bennett and reagan]
[aj]
[lexi, cam, and chaz]
[cousins]
[new fuzzy pbk chair by auntie karen and katie]
[dana and scott]
slowly but surely, all the guests went on their merry way. we were so blessed to have been able to celebrate olive’s big day with our wonderful friends and family. it was a day filled with fun, love, and laughter. we seriously had a great time, i know olive did! the whole party was a success! wow…it had come and gone and nothing but fabulous memories now remain {well actually the glitter and a bit of confetti are still lingering around!}.
thank you to everyone who came out to celebrate olive’s first big day! we can’t wait to celebrate her real {for reals} birthday on thanksgiving day with more of her family, this week!!! woo hoo!
