turkey day

Posted on December 10, 2014 by tandem in love

oh goodness. i have been so behind with blogging/posting. life has been so hectic and busy. i’m trying so hard to squeeze in some much needed sleep as well…which i have been terribly lacking in. that does not make me happy. i love sleep. loooooove it. but of late, i have been so very sleep deprived and that is no bueno. hello…that is why they call it beauty sleep and i am currently no beauty…just way tired looking!

anyhoo, i’m finally posting about thanksgiving. yeah…that was how long ago? but better late than never, non?!

we started off our morning right. relaxing, coffee, and just us being together. olive took her nap and after that, we gathered our stuff together and headed over to aunt wendy’s. they always have thanksgiving ‘dinner’ early. usually around 1:30pm. so, it always works out for us because my family has always had thanksgiving dinner around dinner time…6-7pm. we are able to split our day between both families.

we got to aunt wendy’s and settled in. we had brought a birthday cake to celebrate olive’s first. she was born one day before thanksgiving last year, so this year, it fell on thanksgiving day! the food was ready within the hour, i grabbed a plate for olive first. i fed my little babes her first thanksgiving meal {it was only colostrom last year!} and then grabbed a plate for myself! yum. the food was good…and very, very unhealthy! just keeding…it was all fat free 😉

[olive not having a meltdown in auntie missy’s arms]

[daniel and missy ready to give miss olive her birthday present]

[birthday gifts from auntie missy]

[my little babes]

[daniel and olive…cousins]

[me and lori]

[gramma and olive]

[‘lunch’ is served]

[darling morgan and miss olive]

[sister grace]

after we ate, we hung out for a bit. we caught up with the family and olive played around. she has to get warmed up and become familiar with her surroundings before she gets comfortable. once she is, she will start to explore and become friendly with the people around her.

after a bit, we decided to break out her birthday cake since the other desserts were being served. we lit her birthday candle, brought out the cake to the dining room table, and sang happy birthday! she didn’t even wait for us to sing. she saw the cake and dug her finger right into it! ha!

after her cake, we chilled for just a little bit longer and then headed over to my parent’s house to another round of thanksgiving dinner and birthday cake!

[birthday cake!]

[before we sang, she had already stuck her finger in the cake! // make a wish!]

***

when we arrived at my parent’s house, we were delighted by the cute little presents waiting for miss olive! my sisters did such a wonderful job putting her presents together! so sweet.

my sister kim was downstairs, still whipping up our delicious dinner. we all pitched in to help finish it up while the kids played around. every year, my sister kim always makes the yummiest thanksgiving dinner. it’s soooo good! everything is delicious, tasty, and savory. my favorite dishes are the brussel sprouts and mashed potatoes. this year, though, i was really loving the mushrooms. like i said before…it’s all fat free!

[cutest gift…a ‘target’ shopping cart and goodies inside!]

[if you’re vietnamese…you’ll know what’s inside the container thuy is holding!]

[cheers!]

[my sweet brother dan]

[thanksgiving table]

[happy birthday olive!]

[here comes the food!]

[cheers!]

[the boys were super excited mom found the wishbone!]

[bennett ended up with the winning part]

once we were done with dinner, we relaxed a bit at the table, and then the clean up began. of course, in old school fashion, all the women cleaned up while the kids and the men chilled.

after the dishes were done and the food was put away, we brought out olive’s birthday cake. kim and thuy got olive the prettiest cake and candles! it was covered in sprinkles! who doesn’t love sprinkles?! we sang happy birthday and she made a ‘wish’. so perfect!

[my sweetie]

[olive with her crazy aunties]

***

after cake, the big kids were super excited to decorate cookies. every year, i bake a few dozen sugar cookies {a blog post to come!} and bring them over so the kids can have fun decorating cookies! it’s creative, fun, and yummy {maybe a few get eaten before it’s all done 😉 } it’s entertaining to watch them, how creative different they all are and what fun designs they come up with on each cookie.

[fun festive decorated cookies]

[olive and grandma]

while the kids decorated cookies, we opened up olive’s birthday gifts from her aunties and cousins. i loved every little detail! the purr-fect card, the ‘target’ cart, the french word blocks, the best baby book {it’s so fun and interactive}, and the cutest, coziest cat hat for miss olive! so perfectly thought out and alls so useful! olive is so lucky to have such generous aunties!

[a cat card for my cat baby]

all in all, it was the best ‘first’ thanksgiving for miss olive! we had such a wonderful time celebrating her birthday, eating the most delectable foods, and spending time with our dear family. pure success in the ‘it’s a wonderful life’ department. woot. woot.

xoxo

fam jam night

Posted on December 8, 2014 by tandem in love

it was a friday night and it called for a dinner night out with the fam. after doing some fun holiday activities, we all met up at a restaurant in hinsdale called vistro. a cool vibe eatery by paul virant {owner of vie & perennial virant}. it was bustling and busy. we scored a close parking spot and cruised on in. we originally had a high table but that wasn’t going to work with ms. olive. so, they were super kind and accommodating to us! they quickly relocated us to a booth. i was quite pleased at how wonderful they were with our situation.

[olive doesn’t get a high chair…she sits on the table like a lady]

[famille]

[pouty]

we sat down and ordered some delicious apps and beverages. the crispy tuscan kale and brussels sprouts were soooooo good. i could have eaten those two dishes as my main meal. seriously. so yum. but i did not regret my burger. that was delectable as well.

i loved the vibe of the restaurant. it was quite cozy, warm, and friendly. the service was fantastic and everyone was so nice. obviously having a baby {who wants to move around} can be a challenge at a restaurant but everyone thought she was a cutie. duh, of course. olive wanted so badly to walk everywhere in the place…i tried my best to not have her interfere with other patron’s meals. we cruised around the tables and walked into the hallway where the bathrooms were and turned back around to our table. and then maybe start over again.

[festive cocktails]

[this brussel sprout dish was soooo tasty!]

[kim doing her best RBF]

we were doing pretty well throughout the meal but near the end, it was time to go! she started to get a bit fussy and it was close to her bedtime.

we had a great time being silly, relaxing, and noshing on some super savory food. it was a wonderful end to a great day.

xoxo

momfessions

Posted on December 4, 2014 by tandem in love

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! 🙂

xoxo

olive & santa claus

Posted on December 3, 2014 by tandem in love

we were so excited to have scheduled a visit with santa claus! so, dream works has created and built ten {i think it’s ten, or is it seven? anyhoo} led lighted santa clause houses throughout the u.s. and oakbrook center has one! it’s a good thing we made our appointment early because it is now booked throughout the season! we were so excited to have experienced this journey to see santa claus, what a unique idea it is!

we packed ourselves up and headed out to oakbrook. we were running a bit behind but that was no matter because, unfortunately, santa was also running sooo behind! we waited in line for quite some time {that sucked…especially since we made an appointment!} and it was so cold out…boo! the guest service folks were kind enough to let us step away and warm up inside a store and not lose our spot in line. we needed to because it was way too cold outside for miss olive! after a very, very long wait, we were finally up next! woo hoo!

[pretty cool, huh? the images actually change]

[waiting out in the cold for santa // coat by zara]

[red nosed reindeer]

[auntie kim making a pit stop by]

[fiona, donkey, and shrek]

[my little baby warming up]

they gathered us inside the ‘foyer’ of the house and we were welcomed in by a few elves. we waited there, another ten minutes or so, before we were finally greeted by another elf! she brought us into another room and talked about how we were going to meet santa! buttttt, santa had snuck away! shrek and donkey appeared and said we needed to go to the north pole to see santa, he had gone back and we needed to find a way to meet up with him!

[we are finally inside! waiting to see if santa is behind the curtain]

[nope, santa isn’t here!]

[shrek and donkey telling us that we need to build a sleigh to get to the north pole!]

our little elf then led us into another room, a top secret room where we could build a sleigh ride to fly to the north pole. we spent some time in there building our cool sleigh! it was so interactive and fun!

[building our sleigh on the computer!]

after we built our sleigh, we were then led into another room where our computerized sleigh came to life! we all jumped onto the sleigh and held on tight for our trip to the north pole. it was soooooo cool. we loved it! it was so realistic and fun. we flew through the sky with shrek, fiona, donkey, and other friends, they led us to the north pole.

[we were flying to the north pole! it was so awesome!]

after our sleigh ride, we finally landed in the north pole! we were almost there, santa was within reach! we waited in another room and waited our turn to see him! as you can see…olive was loving it {not}! i knew she would completely freak out once i handed her over. oh em gee. i could not stop laughing. my poor baby girl was having a freak out. and that santa…he was so stinkin’ cool. he didn’t break a sweat and handled her like a pro! the pics down below are too presh.

[this one is our favorite…ha!}

yay! olive’s first visit with santa was a success{?}. well, it was for us, although i think olive might argue that. hehe.

happy holidays y’all!

xoxo

one year photos

Posted on December 2, 2014 by tandem in love

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.

[banner by little dovie // crown by little blue olive // tutu by my sweet pea couture]

[my favorite}

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!!

cheers to another beautiful year of olive!

xoxo

happy twelve months!

Posted on November 28, 2014 by tandem in love

happy twelve months olive!

[photos taken on 11.21.14]

weight: 20 lbs 15oz.

height: 30.5″

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.

xoxo

happy thanksgiving + hb to miss olive!!

Posted on November 27, 2014 by tandem in love

i am thankful for sooooo many wonderful things in my life.

i am thankful for my hubby charming of 3/6+ years. he is the light of my life and i am so grateful for him. he {insert cheesy line} really does complete me.

i am thankful olive was born on this day last year and it’s been the best ride of our lives thus far. she is the most wonderful little person evah. she brings us so much joy, laughter, and love. i am still amazed that we did this…created the most perfect little human being.

i am thankful for my wonderful, wonderful family {my cooking crazy mom, my giving and loving dad, my two beautiful sisters, and my cool dude brothers}. they have been the most supportive people in my life. when the tough gets going, they are there for you. no matter how hard i fall, they will always be there to pick me up and i am incredibly thankful for them.

i am thankful for my fantastic in laws. dick and jane are the most loving parents and friends. they have always been there for us and we are so appreciative of them!

i am thankful for so many, many more things! i am grateful for my health and the health of my loved ones around me. i am thankful for the beautiful house we live in and how much more beautiful it will be as hc works so hard on the remodeling of it. i am thankful for grace and what an amazing big sister she has been to little miss olive. i am thankful for my friends, who love me for who i am and i get to engage in mindless gossip talk with them. i am thankful for so much beauty in my life. period.

stop yourself and think how wonderful this world we live in can be, stop to smell the roses, see the glass half full, enjoy the people around you, slow down and be kind and thoughtful.

this thanksgiving, count your blessings and give someone a great big hug to make their day a little brighter.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE BEST LITTLE BABES!!!!

xoxo

starbucks mini me

Posted on November 26, 2014 by tandem in love

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!

xoxo

olive’s first birthday party!

Posted on November 25, 2014 by tandem in love

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]

[beautiful flower arrangements by my sister kim]

[first birthday cake by toni’s patisserie!]

[dessert table]

[pink dot & gold glitter sprinkle smash cake]

[milk glasses]

[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!

[birthday girl waking up from her nap!]

[about to get her ready for her big day!]

[gold bow hair clip by pink toast boutique, dress by jcrew, and gold tights by hanna andersson]

[cousin jay, sister in law missy, and aunt wendy]

[jaime, liam, and marina]

[cameron, courtney, chaz, lexi, and dominick]

[barbara, lynne, and patrick]

[katie and me]

[pam, elva, and parker]

[the loot!]

[reagan, bennett, and aj]

[parker and liam]

[smiley brady, kim, and me]

[grace, auntie missy, and olive]

[helloooo.]

[goofing around]

[hanging out with the big kids!]

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.

[getting all jazzed up for her birthday smash cake! // tutu by my sweet pea couture // birthday crown by little blue olive]

[smash cake!]

[paparazzi]

[hmmm, it tastes good…]

[hmmm, i’ll try some more…]

[yeahhhh, it tastes great!]

[nom, nom, nom]

[milk, please]

[lori and jay]

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!

[the end]

xoxo

first celebration for her first!

Posted on November 21, 2014 by tandem in love

we were able to get together with dick, jane, aunt wendy, and their cousin donna for a little birthday celebration! olive’s first birthday! well, her birthday day is still a wee bit aways but we love celebrating all week long here!

it was our typical routine. wake up. nurse. playing around on the bed. she gives me kisses. olive gets bored and now slides off the edge of the bed and scurries away. i get ready. she tears up the house. i run around and pick things up. i brew a pot o coffee. i make her breakfast. she eats. she plays. she rubs her eyes. she nurses. she goes to bed for her morning nap. every. single. morning. that we have together. so trying to predict how long she will sleep is a gamble!

so, i waited and waited and waited. a bit stressed out because we had to leave for our lunch date! so i went in her room to peek on her…i kind of made a ruckus to see if she would stir {i shuffled through her drawers to pick out her outfit of the day}. stir she did! woo!

she nursed again, i got her dressed, and we were off! i had already thrown everything into the car and got myself ready while she was napping. we sped on our way to the restaurant. we had agreed to meet at a halfway point…at the streets of woodfield, where maggiano’s is at. we were already a half an hour late!

they so kindly waited at the bar…a good excuse to have a drink, non? once we arrived, we were seated right away. it was too cute…they had decorated the table with confetti and wrote a sweet note to us. we were celebrating a few birthdays! olive’s and jane’s!

[sitting next to papa]

[they sprinkled our table with confetti!! how cute!]

[jane, donna, and wendy]

we perused the menu and quickly decided on food. how could you not go with their buy a classic pasta and take one home?! um, best deal evah! i ordered the mushroom ravioli and asked for the eggplant parmesan to take home. yum!

we entertained olive and conversed amongst one another. she was having a blast playing with the crayons and having papa feed her pieces of bread. I had a great time talking with the ladies. It was wonderful to finally meet donna! over the summer, while jane was watching olive, donna stopped by to visit…she was able to meet olive but i didn’t get a chance to meet her. so today was the day!

[my babes]

[yummy mushroom ravioli]

after our meal, the sever came by with a birthday cookie cake topped off with a candle. olive wasn’t quite sure what was going on. she stared at it, perplexed. we wished her a happy birthday and i then blew out the candle for the little lady! she then proceeded to throw almost all the cookies onto the floor! hey now, mama will eat those cookies! thank goodness there was another plate…i devoured three! they were so yummy!

[lemon cookies]

[happy birthday olive!]

[make a wish!]

after dessert, we started to pack up to get going. i tried to get olive to walk to show dick and jane but olive wasn’t cooperating. she just wanted to crawl. so, all they got was a little stroll while she held onto jane’s hand. too adorbs.

it was a lovely lunch date with the fam! we had a great time starting out olive’s week long birthday celebration! woo hoo!

xoxo

tandem in love

{life is truly beautiful and it should be celebrated + shared.}

Tag Archives: olive

turkey day

fam jam night

momfessions

olive & santa claus

one year photos

happy twelve months!

happy thanksgiving + hb to miss olive!!

starbucks mini me

olive’s first birthday party!

first celebration for her first!